German weekly magazine Spiegel highlighted the strict warning that German European Parliament President Martin Schulz gave to Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras concerning his visit to Moscow. The magazine warns that Tsipras’ visit with Russian President Vladimir Putin could cause a rift in the European Union.
The visit takes place on April 8, just a day prior to date when Greece needs to pay off an installment to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). He called on Tsipras to protect the European Union and not turn against his European allies.
The report states that Tsipras had started to win over Berlin’s trust following his last visit. Speaking to Hannoverschen Allgemeinen Zeitung, Schulz said that the way in which Tsipras is placing his relations with European allies in the search for Russian support is unacceptable. The EU Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner Pierre Moscovici has also warned the Greek PM to be cautious in his dealings with Moscow.
The report also includes statements by Christian Democrats (CDU) leader Gunther Kirchbaum that states that if the Greek government believes that it can find its “soul” in Moscow then it should know that it is standing with the wrong side. “Whoever needs help should turn to Brussels and not Moscow,” he said. He added that the Greek government risks leading the country into a wall.
Another diplomat states that the Greek reforms list is like moving sand. Measures come and go. Initially it was just 15 pages long and now it is 26 pages in size. On the one hand the measures are expected to yield 3.7 bln euros, and then the expected yield rises to 6.1 bln euros.
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