Five weeks left for 16 prior actions

The government has a mountain to climb to complete the prior actions required for a successful conclusion to this and next month's inspection by the country's creditors. The European Commission's list of pending actions ahead of the January 21 start of the creditor representatives' visit to Athens is strongly reminiscent of the bailout period.

Besides the pending actions, the head of the Commission's mission to Athens, Declan Costello, said in a letter to the government at the start of the year that government will need to provide answers to a number of issues in the second post-bailout assessment of Greece's progress. These include the handouts that have been promised, the extension of the favorable value-added tax status of five eastern Aegean islands and the possible cost of judicial decisions against previous pension cuts.

The creditors also intend to ask the...