Alexis Tsipras, the new Greek prime minister, might be continuing his campaign to scrap the troika bailout agreement, but it’s Germany which holds
Alexis Tsipras, the new Greek prime minister, might be continuing his campaign to scrap the troika bailout agreement, but it’s Germany which holds the keys to any deal, according to experts.
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Athens wants to replace the troika of the EU, the ECB and the IMF, but Berlin looks unlikely to change its hardline on austerity.
Janis Emmanouilidis of the European Policy Centre said that the most difficult negotiations will certainly be between Greece and Germany.
“Here the two positions are very rigid, very tough and very different. But we will have to reach a compromise between these two sides, between Berlin and Athens,” he said.
The single currency crisis flaring up again also has an impact beyond Europe’s borders.
“From the US’s perspective, a worsening of the euro crisis would be a real negative development,” said Emmanouilidis.
“That’s exactly what you don’t want. You don’t want an escalation of the eurocrisis because you can see the potential dangers, economically and geopolitically speaking.”
Greece is in a corner of Europe that is a geopolitical hotspot with a somewhat difficult neighbourhood.
The finance ministers of Greece and Germany are expected to meet in the coming weeks, media reports say.