September 19, 2011
On we go. That was the message from Greek politicians at a conference in Athens today put on by The Economist. We believe in the July 21 agreement, insisted Evangelos Venizelos, the Greek finance minister, referring to the deal which will give Greece a second bail-out in return for fiscal and structural reforms.
The troika of institutions monitoring Greek progress under its initial rescue programme, the European Commission, the European Central Bank and the IMF, want proof of that. Bob Traa, the fund's man in Athens, had some pretty blunt words for the Greeks today: implementation of tough reforms had slowed, tax evasion was still a huge issue, public-sector spending needed cutting.
Chances are that the Greeks will just about do enough to unlock the latest tranche of international funding some time next month. The Europeans have shown no sign of developing an alternative strategy to lending Greece more money as a way of staving off default, and the fund can point to the promise of more European cash as a reason not to pull the plug. But the public dialogue between the troika ("do more!") and the Greeks ("we will do more!") looks ever more unconvincing.
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