International Herald Tribune
February 21, 2012
The grueling talks that finally produced a bailout agreement for Greece in the early hours of Tuesday morning seem to have been about as much fun as watching an all-night session of Deal or No Deal.
Greece’s version of the popular television quiz show is simply called Deal, which might indicate that there is something in the Greek psyche that is always open to reaching a compromise, despite the evidence in recent weeks of nerve-jangling brinkmanship on the part of the country’s negotiators.
My colleague Stephen Castle explains the numbers and concludes that the agreement could be a new turning point in the European debt crisis, which has raised questions about the viability of the euro itself.
The agreement among European finance ministers on extending the new €130 billion lifeline to Greece heads off the prospect of a Greek default next month. But officials are not claiming that it will resolve either the country’s or the Continent’s chronic debt problems at a stroke.
The marathon negotiations highlight the argument that Europe’s problems are linked to lackluster growth, which some economists say is being exacerbated by the very austerity measures being imposed to confront the debt crisis.
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