A European Commission spokesman said the negotiators worked through the weekend. Talks were “constructive”, butwork remains, said Margaritas Schinas on Monday in Brussels, declining to give details.
The aim is to achieve a technical-level accord that would enable euro zone finance ministers to declare when they meet on May 11 that there is a prospect of concluding the bailout review successfully. That could give the ECB grounds to permit Greek banks tobuy more short-term treasury bills, easing the government’s cash crunch.
Intensive talks on an interim deal between a reshuffled Greek negotiating team and representatives of the European Commission, the European Central Bank and the IMF, renamed the “Brussels Group”, have been under way since last Thursday.
The reality is that wide differences remain over pension and labour reforms in the intensive negotiations between Greece’s leftist government and its international creditors, despite progress in other areas as the country’s cash position becomes increasinglycritical.
The global lenders are unyielding in demands for pensions cuts, rules to ease mass layoffs of private sector workers and opposition to a government plan to raise the minimum wage.
Greece faces repayments to the IMF totalling 970 million euros by May 12. It has been borrowing from municipalities and government entities to meet obligations.
On Sunday, Greek and euro zone officials reported progress on some issues and forecast a result by Wednesday, when the ECB holds its weekly review of emergency lending to Greek banks.
A euro zone official said there was more convergence on some areas than others. Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras’ radical Syriza party has declared “red lines” were the main stumbling block.
Tsipras yielded some ground last week on privatisations and reforming Value Added Tax when he shook up his negotiating team to sideline outspoken Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis, who will represent Athens at next week’s crucial Eurogroup meeting.
http://www.neurope.eu/article/progress-in-greek-talks-but-big-divergences-remain/