Prokopis Pavlopoulos

The Radical Left Coalition (SYRIZA) government’s main goal at the moment is to reach an agreement with lenders (EC, ECB, IMF and ESM) so as to clear the political scene and start its new three-year bailout program along with European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker’s development package worth 35 bln euros.

Greek President Prokopis Pavlopoulos expressed the need for unity on Thursday during his visit to Samos where he was declared an honorary citizen of the island. He underlined his commitment to working towards making Greece a “stronghold of European democracy and European culture through the priceless, spiritual and institutional heritage of ancient Greece and of our ancestors.”

Political “fireworks” in Greece appear to be ebbing in the wake of an agreement with creditors and subsequent votes in Parliament to ratify the deal and pass “prior actions”, while the peaking Grecian summer season means less interest in politics — thankfully — and more for beach, sun, islands and excursions to mainland villages.

Friday political highlights include:

Speaker of the House Zoe Konstantopoulou, a high profile Radical Left Coalition (SYRIZA) cadre, appears to be on a direct collision course with Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, who she is meeting at noon on Thursday.

Greek President Prokopis Pavlopoulos has declined a written request by Parliament President Zoe Konstantopoulou to brief his counterparts over the latter’s claim that proper constitutional and Parliamentary procedures were not followed in the case of the two bailout-linked draft bills on prior actions.

The latest obstacle in the vote for a second package of prior actions via an emergency procedure emerged ominously on Wednesday in the form of non other than Parliament President Zoe Konstantopoulou, a high-profile SYRIZA cadre who appears on a direct collision course with the SYRIZA government and PM Alexis Tsipras.

The provisional conservative leader of the main opposition New Democracy party, Vangelis Meimarakis, met with Greek President Prokopis Pavlopoulos at the Presidential Mansion at 10.30 a.m. on Thursday.

Greek PM Alexis Tsipras was received by the country’s president on Wednesday, immediately after he returned from a tumultuous two days in Brussels and Strasbourg — where, amongst others, he was served with an ultimatum by creditors to achieve a bailout deal.

Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and German Chancellor Angela Merkel spoke by telephone July 6 and agreed that Athens would present proposals to a eurozone summit the next day, a Greek government source said.

Greek President Prokopis Pavlopoulos called a Council of Greek political leaders shortly after the bailout victory for the rejection of international creditors bailout terms on Sunday.

Radical Left Coalition (SYRIZA) Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras arrived shortly after 10 a.m., accompanied by State Minister Nikos Pappas and Government Spokesperson Gabriel Sakellaridis.