All decisions regarding Greece’s exit from the programme, including those relating to debt relief, will be taken by the June 21 Eurogroup, regardless of whether the International Monetary Fund (IMF) decides to activate its programme for Greece, according to a senior European official in Brussels.
At a press briefing about the upcoming Eurogroup on Thursday, the official expressed satisfaction with the staff level agreement reached the previous Saturday on the package of reforms for completing the fourth review of the Greek programme.
“We are very happy with that a staff-level agreement with Athens was reached before the Eurogroup on Thursday,” the official said, and also welcomed statements by Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras that all prior actions will be completed before the start of the FIFA World Cup on June 14.
Regarding the IMF, the official said the current period was crucial since the margins for making a decision to activate the IMF programme for Greece had narrowed significantly.
“We are working to make the activation of the programme possible,” the official said, noting that this depended on the measures for the debt, on which there would be a more in-depth discussion at Thursday’s Eurogroup.
The IMF’s participation with its own funds remains important for the credibility of Greece’s exit from the programme, the official noted, while clarifying that the IMF will definitely remain involved in some way during the post-programme period.
Asked whether decisions on easing Greece’s debt might be delayed due to disagreements with the IMF, the official expressed certainty that everything will be done by June 21 and ruled out any other possibility.
