April 17, 2011
Greece will prove doubters wrong by returning to growth and avoiding debt restructuring, Finance Minister Giorgos Papaconstantinou told reporters in Washington on Sunday in an attempt to douse growing rumors about Athens having to default and reports that the European Union and the International Monetary Fund may hold back on the next tranche of the country’s 110-billion-euro loan package because of delays to reforms.
“The pain and cost of restructuring would be bigger than the benefits,” he said after private talks with IMF Managing Director Dominique Strauss-Kahn at the sidelines of the IMF and World Bank annual spring meetings in Washington. “Restructuring is not the position of the Greek government.”
Papaconstantinou added that the “public discussion about the matter does not help the country.” His comments came just hours after former Prime Minister Costas Simitis suggested in an interview with To Vima newspaper that a “well-prepared” restructuring would improve Greece’s position.
Strauss-Kahn backed Papaconstantinou’s position, saying that despite the fear on financial markets that Greece might default, there were no plans for restructuring its debt. “Nothing has changed. Period,” he told reporters.
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