Greek Exit From Euro Zone Just a 'Matter of Time'

[marmar]

from Der Spiegel:



Last week, it looked as though the euro had been saved. Now, in the wake of Greek Prime Minister Papandreou's announcement of a national referendum on the bailout package for his country, the common currency is even closer to the abyss. Still, say German commentators, it may have been the right move.

Despite its location on France's glamorous Cote d'Azur, Wednesday evening's meeting likely won't be a pleasant one for Giorgios Papandreou. The Greek prime minister is set to meet with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy. None of them, one presumes, will be in the mood to enjoy their enchanting surroundings.

Leaders of the world's most powerful economies begin arriving on France's south coast on Wednesday night for the Thursday kick-off of this year's G-20 summit. Host Sarkozy had been hoping the gathering would focus on raising funds to boost the effectiveness of the euro backstop fund, the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF), but the success of the meeting is now in doubt. Papandreou's announcement on Monday evening that he was planning to hold a referendum on the EU bailout package for his country has shocked and infuriated his would-be benefactors -- and sent global markets into yet another tailspin.

The news came less than a week after an all-night bargaining session in Brussels that resulted in an agreement to slash Greek debt by 50 percent, make a further €130 billion in loans available to the country and leverage the EFSF to €1 trillion. Markets immediately calmed and the euro began climbing against the dollar. .............(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.spiegel.de/international/europe/0,1518,795426,00.html

[CanonRay]

1. They had an all night bargaining session, but nobody asked the Greek people

and now they're all surprised? Idiots are running the world.

[marmar]

2. "Idiots are running the world."

Es verdad. :thumbsup:

[pampango]

3. Agreed. I wonder if they'll end up leaving the EU, too.

And the Eurozone could well end up being just the "strong" economies of northern Europe, jettisoning the "weak" economies of Greece, Italy, Spain and Portugal.

[tama]

5. No chance

Sweden and Denmark not in Eurozone, Lissabon treaty requires that all EU members join Eurozone, and all the treaties are trash anyway since they are just words on paper. Brussels got no army to punish those who don't comply to the "rules". EU has no democratic legitimacy left and EU leaders have no credibility.

If some form of EU will remain, that will happen only after complete remake.

[FarCenter]

4. I wonder if they use those OWS hand signals, since the G-20 is sort of a General Assembly

I can just see Sarkozy, Merkel, and Papandreou wiggling their fingers at each other.

[tama]

6. No,

they shout at each other in languages that are mutually incomprehensible and get temper tantrums when nobody is listening.