Juncker dampens Greek pension hopes

As government officials seek to convince visiting foreign auditors that the pension cuts slated for January 1 are not necessary for Greece to meet budget targets, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker issued a strong message on Wednesday noting that "the measures agreed have to be implemented."

Juncker, who hailed the "Herculean" efforts of the Greek people to emerge from the country's financial crisis, made his comments on Wednesday to a group of journalists from news outlets including Kathimerini as the first visit by Greece's former lenders got under way in Athens - the first since the country's bailout exit in August.

For its part, the government insists that Greece has enough fiscal space - almost 1 billion euros - to render the pension cuts unnecessary and says that it is prepared to delay the implementation of its countermeasures so that they take...