Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis said he’ll quit if Greece votes to accept creditors’ bailout proposals in Sunday’s referendum.
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There would have to be a new election, and he might even win it. (A referendum win requires 51 per cent of the vote; you can win a Greek election with 35 per cent.).
Meanwhile, the European Commission vice-president for the euro, Valdis Dombrovskis, said the eurozone can “weather” the effects of the debt crisis in Greece because of steps taken in recent years to make it stronger.
“Should the agreement plan submitted by the European Commission, European Central Bank and the worldwide Monetary Fund to the June 25 eurogroup and consisting of two parts, which form their single proposal, be accepted?”
At least 20,000 people, many waving European and Greek flags, gathered in front of parliament in Syntagma square five days before a referendum on whether or not to accept a new bailout.
“I have set out my position and I have nothing to add to it”, she said after meeting with Italian Premier Matteo Renzi in Berlin.
While simultaneously negotiating a new, restructured bailout to keep Greece afloat, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras’ call for a referendum has ratcheted up pressure on everyone involved.
– If Greece and the Eurogroup agree terms, the countries of the euro zone must approve lending which would be guaranteed by their own treasuries.
German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said the latest Greek letter “did not provide further clarity” in the impasse and was “no basis” for resuming serious negotiations before the referendum.
“There are those who insist on linking the result of the referendum with the country’s future in the euro”, Tsipras said.
He added that ministers also agreed to “take note” of a letter from Tsipras that emerged Wednesday telling creditors he was ready to accept terms they offered at the weekend.
Following a late-night teleconference, the 19 eurozone finance ministers announced they were putting any further talks on hold.
The vote “has been called on such a short notice, that this in itself is a major problem”, Jagland said Wednesday by phone from Lisbon, Portugal, according to The Telegraph.
The sudden turn of events raised questions about what offer was still on the table for Greece, whether Tsipras would go ahead with a referendum scheduled for Sunday and, if so, what deal Greeks would actually be voting on. The bank runs have brought the realities of default and socialist ruin to voters in Greece, which their new government has managed to accelerate.
Greece has suffered its fourth ratings downgrade this week, as Moody’s investors service slashed the country’s rating from Caa2 to Caa3, or just above default.
Mr Tsipras has already urged his citizens to reject the measures, but he claims that bank deposits and pensions are safe. Still, Mr. Renzi said that he would respect the will of the Greek people. The last country to miss an International Monetary Fund payment was Zimbabwe in 2001.
Sunday’s hastily called referendum is based on creditor reform proposals made last week and roundly rejected by the Greek government.
It was the ECB’s decision on Sunday to refuse to increase emergency funding for Greek banks that pushed Athens to close lenders and impose the capital controls.
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Despite the opening of some banks for the elderly the only option for everyone else was to queue – sometimes for hours – at cash machines to withdraw a maximum of 60 euros a day.
