Naftemporiki — Eurogroup chairman Jeroen Dijsselbloem went a step further this week in weighing in on the “IMF factor” entailed in the now tenuous Greek program, warning that Greece will default if the Fund decides to leave the bailout.
The Dutch finance minister’s eyebrow-raising statement was carried in the Wednesday edition of the Netherlands-based Financieele Dagblad.
he also said the IMF does not want to abandon the Greek program, whereas his task as Eurogroup chairman is to stabilize the situation in Greece, something he said is in the best interest of all involved parties.
“We continue to neglect the massive damage, from an economic and political standpoint, that Greece’s exit from the euro zone would entail,” he said.
In a statement to Reuters Wednesday, Dijsselbloem pre empted the outcome next Friday’s Eurogroup saying that Greece and its international lenders are not expected to reach agreement on the country’s bailout progress, something that may well push Greece another step closer to default; elections and a possible change of government in Holland and the election campaign France make the February Eurogroup meeting the last opportunity to conclude the Greek review before Greece’s July loan repayments become due.
“People think that because there’s a Eurogroup next week we have to have it worked out. But that’s never been my timeframe. It’s unthinkable,” Dijsselbloem told Dutch television, adding: “The IMF must also be on board“.
Athens wants a deal soon to join the European Central Bank’s bond-buying program in March and lure back investors.
The EU and the IMF are at odds over the country’s fiscal targets and the fund has yet to decide if it will join Greece’s third bailout program. Berlin has made IMF participation a condition for approving new loans.
Dijsselbloem is reportedly keen to remain president of the Eurogroup in the event of a change of government in Holland, something that will require the support of other powerful finance ministers. Because of the increased workload since the euro zone sovereign debt crisis and plans to integrate the euro zone even further, euro zone officials have been discussing the idea of a “permanent” Eurogroup chairman.
