End of patience

Martin Schulz, the new president of the European Parliament, on Monday called on all Greek parties to agree to further austerity measures which would entitle the country to more financial aid from other eurozone nations.

"I expect Greece and all parties there to focus on implementing the measures of the troika," Schulz told journalists in Berlin.

The troika - made up of the International Monetary Fund, the European Central Bank and the European Commission - is waiting for a written confirmation that Athens will agree to the body's controversial demands, including the lowering of minimum wage as well as the scrapping of additional monthly wages.

The troika has made it abundantly clear that Greece will receive another financial shot in the arm in March only if its conditions are fully met.

No time for party games

Schulz said he could partly understand the political considerations of Greece's political parties in dealing with the crisis, but warned that the country's ability to act was at stake.

At the same time, Schulz demanded that European Union member countries come up with an offer for genuine growth in Greece.

Speaking with DW in Berlin, Schulz said he was afraid of a snowball effect, should Greece be forced to leave the eurozone.

"If the Greek economy breaks down, the banks would be affected too - and those are closely linked with French and German financial institutions," Schulz explained.

Leading Greek politicians on Monday were not found to be in much of a hurry to deal with the crisis, despite the desperate state of their country, denying the fact that there was a Monday noon deadline to produce a written commitment to savings measures, as demanded by the troika.

Greek Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos said a meeting of eurozone counterparts could take place on Wednesday.

Author: Hardy Graupner (Reuters, dpa)
Editor: Martin Kuebler