Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras left Brussels on Friday without securing any firm commitment on Greece’s debt problem but signaled nonetheless that he expected “positive developments”.
“I believe that by the December Eurogroup we may have positive developments and positive decisions in early December., so Greece will be part of the QE program at the start of or early in the new year,” Tsipras told a press conference on Friday evening, referring to a scheduled meeting of eurozone finance ministers on December 5.
“That will send a signal to the investment community, which is waiting to determine that the worst is behind us,” he added.
The comments came after sideline talks with French President Francois Hollande and German Chancellor Angela Merkel failed to elicit concrete commitments.
Sources said Tsipras’s conversation with Merkel was brief, with the latter noting that representatives of Greece’s international creditors would decide on what to do with the country’s debt.
One German source said Merkel told Tsipras that decisions on Greek debt are not up to Germany and will be taken at the level of the Eurogroup, echoing a stance that she has assumed many times in the past with Tsipras.
Hollande, questioned by reporters about his conversation with Tsipras, noted that eurozone leaders have promised Greece debt relief since 2012 but for there to be progress, action must be taken by both sides.
The discussion also centered on the refugee and migrant crisis, sources said, with Merkel noting certain delays on the Greek side.
