The 18 of June is an important date for Greece. And not only because Greece hopes to clinch a deal with its international lenders at a meeting of eurozone finance ministers on that date. The date of the next eurogroup meeting, Athens was told in no uncertain terms by the lenders, is the final deadline for the government to surrender its red lines unconditionally and sine another damaging deal for Greece.
But two other important political events are marked in the political calendar of Greece that may influence the outcome of the eurogroup discussions.
The visit of prime minister Tsipras to St Petersboug as a guest in international BRICS forum where he is also expected where he’s expected to again have face-to-face talks with Putin about an extension of the “Turkish stream” pipeline carrying Russian natural gas, the prospective “Greek stream” leg. A final deal there could see and advance payment of part of the profits from the pipeline and a possible deal of financing from BRICS.
Both the US and Europe have warned Greece to avoid building relations with Russia and BRICS.
And on the same date the preliminary verdict of the parliamentary Debt Truth Committee, Zoe Konstantopoulou set up. The committee is investigating the truth about the increase in Greece’s public debt. Eric Toussaint of the Committee for the Abolition of Third World Debt is the team’s scientific coordinator. The Debt Truth Committee currently includes 35 international and Greek experts in law, economics, accounting, banking from Europe as well as Zambia, Ecuador, and Brazil. Reports and data from the IMF research unit have been requested and it is anticipated that a legal challenge is to follow the verdict of the committee. The committee is addressing the issue of loans being issued on conditions that violate the social, economic, cultural, civic, and political rights of the people concerned, as well as the guidelines of the institutions themselves, particularly the IMF.
