Greek leaders agree on fresh austerity measures

 ATHENS, Aug. 1 (Xinhua) -- The Greek three-party coalition 1 government leaders reached on Wednesday an agreement on the framework of a series of fresh austerity measures worth 11.5 billion euros (13.8 billion U.S. dollars) to secure further tranches of international bailout loans.

"Political leaders accepted the Premier's proposal for spending cuts which are a prerequisite 2 for the country's stay in the euro zone and further negotiations 3 with lenders," Greek Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras said.
He made the statement following a meeting of conservative Prime Minister Antonis Samaras with socialist 4 PASOK party leader Evangelos Venizelos and Democratic Left party chief Fotis Kouvelis.
The Greek official added that the measures, to be implemented 5 over the next two years, would be finalized 6 in coordination 7 with international lenders by September. Efforts were being made so that the new cuts will have the smallest possible social impact on the most vulnerable groups of recession- hit Greeks, he added.
After a series of talks with visiting auditors 8 of European Union and International Monetary 9 Fund lenders in Athens over the past week, Samaras pushed his coalition partners for the deal on the savings 10 demanded by creditors 11.
According to sources, he argued that it was a necessary step to secure a positive progress report from auditors which will ensure the release of further loans to Greece this autumn.
It was also reported that the deal will pave the ground for a review of some harsh terms of the bailout agreements clinched 12 since 2010 to keep the debt-ridden country afloat.
Venizelos and Kouvelis had expressed reservations that a new wave of austerity cuts would further fuel recession in the debt-stricken country. They suggested instead focus on an agreement with lenders on a two-year extension of the fiscal 13 adjustment period to ease the pressure on Greek society.
However, creditors pressed for the new cuts to be introduced before agreeing on any renegotiation of conditions of bailout deals with Athens, since Greece has repeatedly missed time-tables on austerity and structural 14 reform goals over the past two years.
In a statement after Wednesday's meeting, Venizelos said that he reluctantly agreed to the Premier's proposal for the sake of the country.
"We will not lead the country to elections," he stressed in an indication that failure to reach a deal could lead to a collapse 15 of the coalition government which was formed in June, following two rounds of general elections in Greece.
Uncertainty 16 is a luxury Greece cannot afford at the moment, local analysts 17 warned, while officials from the Finance Ministry 18 said the delay in the release of new bailout loans has put pressure on cash reserves this summer.
Without the further support of international lenders, Greece could go bankrupt as soon as the coming autumn and be driven out of the European common currency zone in a development which could hit more European economies and the international financial system.