Dutch back German government on Greek bailout terms

Reuters
June 10, 2011

The Netherlands on Friday backed Germany over the participation of the private sector in a new bailout package for debt-laden Greece, an issue that has set Berlin on a collision course with the European Central Bank.

"We view the German proposals favorably," Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte told a televised press conference in The Hague.

"The position of (German Finance Minister Wolfgang) Schaeuble and (German Chancellor Angela) Merkel seems reasonable, rolling over the debt a bit and having the private sector take some of the responsibility, possibly on a voluntary basis," he said.

Germany has so far defied a warning from the European Central Bank that private sector participation in a second bailout of Greece could trigger a "credit event" that would roil financial markets.

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