Greek withdrawal from the eurozone

French President Francois Hollande on Friday sent a “message” both to Greece and the Eurozone, following his meeting with German Chancellor Angela Merkel in Paris.

By Jan Strupczewski and George Georgiopoulos

European Union paymaster Germany softened its tone on Friday as euro zone finance ministers raced to break a deadlock over Athens' debts.

European Parliament President Martin Schultz met with Austrian Chancellor Werner Faymann in Vienna, where the former reiterated that, as a matter of respect, the new Greek government should be given a chance.

He also said the German FinMin’s quick reaction to the proposal was “surprising”. Schulz reiterated that Yanis Varoufakis’ proposal to the EU partners does not lack substance.

The German government appeared to open the door to a last-minute deal between Athens and its creditors, saying Friday that Greece's request for a loan extension from its eurozone partners provided "a starting point" for more talks.        

EZ ministers meet at the Eurozone shortly after 4 p.m. on Friday to discuss Greece's future. Germany's rejection of the Greek offer for a 6-month extension to the bailout deal and the current negotiations have brought talk of a Grexit to the fore. Twitter uses with a sense of humor and a knack for graphic arts gave their own suggestions to what a new drachma currency should look like.

Few Europeans were guilty of assuming that new Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras would perform what Greeks call a kolotoumba ("somersault") the instant he assumed duties, meaning to quickly change political positions.

The arduous negotiations between the EU and Greece over a temporary loan to resolve Athens? bailout crisis has reawakened fears of a "Grexit", or Greek exit from the single currency bloc.

Here are in three questions some of the issues at stake:

Germany rejected a request by Athens Thursday for a six-month extension to its EU loan program, denting hopes that Europe and Greece can find a quick solution to a bitter debt row.

By Nikos Chrysoloras & Eleni Chrepa

Greece?s government submitted a request to its euro-area creditors to extend the availability of bailout funds for six months in a last-ditch effort to avert a cash crunch.

Greece offered to accept conditions on an extension to its loan agreements with the eurozone, and even an inspection by the European Commission, at a fraught meeting in Brussels on Monday, documents released by Athens showed.