Yiannis Dragasakis

Govenrment Vice President Yiannis Dragasakis met with German ambassador to Athens Peter Schoof on Thursday and discussed the recent developments after the succesful recapitalisation of the Greek banks.

The two officials also talked about issues regarding Greece’s economic growth and measures to attract investments.

EU Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner Pierre Moscovici met with Greek Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos and Alt. Finance Minister George Chouliarakis on Wednesday. He said that Greece should remain in the Eurozone while returning to growth and pointed to the European Commission’s solidarity towards Greece.

The new government sworn in today before the President of the Hellenic Republic, Prokopis Pavlopoulos. Some swore on the bible and others took a civil oath.

By Prokopis Hatzinikolaou

Greece?s proposal to its creditors includes the maintenance of state revenues from property taxation at 2.65 billion euros per year both for 2015 and 2016 ? i.e. the same target that was introduced and collected by the previous government in 2014.

Talks between Greece and its international creditors (European Commission, European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund) ended in failure on Sunday, sending Greece stumbling closer towards a Grexit. Greece and creditors have been negotiating for months on reforms needed to release 7.2 billion euros in bailout aid benchmarked for Greece.

Talks between Greece and its lenders ended with no breakthrough on Sunday evening in Brussels, with Thursday?s meeting of eurozone finance ministers now being identified as the next opportunity for an agreement to be reached on the measures needed for Athens to unlock another 7.2 billion euros in bailout funds and avoid a potential default.

Greek officials were locked in talks with the country?s lenders over the weekend, with both sides having proposals on how a deal to unlock further bailout funding could be reached.

Talks between Greece and its lenders are due to resume in Brussels on Saturday after a clutch of government officials flew back to the Belgian capital on Friday in an attempt to salvage hopes of an agreement to secure another 7.2 billion euros in bailout funds.

 Top party figures say elections could be needed if proposal does attract support

With Greece due to be presented with a proposal from its lenders, attention is gradually turning toward SYRIZA and how the party?s MPs and members will react to the content of the document put forward by the institutions.

By Yiannis Papadoyiannis

Greek banks are facing the specter of nonperforming loans climbing to 100 billion euros ? or 45 percent of all loans issued ? in the coming months owing to the seemingly endless uncertainty in the local economy.