May 9, 2011
A secret meeting of EU finance ministers in Luxembourg on Friday has generated suspicions that a second bailout may soon be required for Greece's stricken economy. Most German commentators agree that Athens' departure from the euro zone or an overly swift restructuring of the country's debt could have drastic consequences.
On Friday, Spiegel Online reported on a secret meeting taking place in Luxembourg at which finance ministers from leading euro-zone countries and Athens discussed options for dealing with Greece's ongoing crisis, which even a multibillion euro bailout has failed to resolve. Spiegel Online reported that Athens is mulling, among other scenarios, a possible departure from the common currency area.
On Saturday, Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou denied the report, calling it "rumor mongering."
It emerged Sunday, however, that finance ministers from Europe's largest economies, including Germany, France, Italy and Spain, have already attended secret meetings several times in order to be able to discretely discuss the euro crisis, the Süddeutsche Zeitung newspaper reported on Monday.
The fact that politicians initially denied there was any secret meeting on Friday and then later trying to play down what had been discussed, has led to speculation on the editorial pages of major newspapers in Germany that a second bailout for Greece is likely to come soon.
Several editorialists also believe that a debt restructuring, or "haircut," will also be necessary for Athens. That would involve debt forgiveness that will hit taxpayers in Germany and other countries straight in the pocketbook. They warn, however, that a haircut, if done incorrectly, could also have an incalculable impact on the European banking sector that might echo the collapse of Lehman Brothers in 2008.
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Παρουσίαση στα ελληνικά στο Βήμα
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