Greece aid plan endorsed by EU leaders
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Eurozone countries agreed on a bailout plan for debt-hit Greece late Thursday night, combining bilateral loans and money from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for a standby aid package for the country.
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Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou speaks to media upon his arrival to a Socialist Party Group (PSE) meeting prior to the European summit in Brussels, capital of Belgium, March 25, 2010. Papandreou on Thursday urged European Union leaders to stabilize the euro while the cash-strapped country determines to continue a program to cut its ballooning budget deficit. [Xinhua] |
![Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou speaks to media upon his arrival to a Sociallist Party Group (PSE) meeting prior to the European summit in Brussels, capital of Belgium, March 25, 2010. Papandreou on Thursday urged European Union leaders to stabilize the euro while the cash-strapped country determines to continue a program to cut its ballooning budget deficit. [Xinhua]](http://images.china.cn/attachement/jpg/site1007/20100326/0011111fa1560d163eea01.jpg "Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou speaks to media upon his arrival to a Sociallist Party Group (PSE) meeting prior to the European summit in Brussels, capital of Belgium, March 25, 2010. Papandreou on Thursday urged European Union leaders to stabilize the euro while the cash-strapped country determines to continue a program to cut its ballooning budget deficit. [Xinhua]")
The eurozone leaders have sent a strong "political signal" by adopting the plan, Herman Van Rompuy, president of the European Council, told a press conference at the end of the first day of the European Union (EU) spring summit.
Van Rompuy said the bailout plan was not only for Greece, but also for the stability of the European economy and the global financial market.
European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso also hailed the plan, saying the eurozone leaders have made "the right decision" and created a "safety net" for Greece. He said the eurozone leaders have delivered on their promise made at the informal summit in February, at which they pledged to "take determined and coordinated action, if needed, to safeguard financial stability in the euro area as a whole."
According to a statement released by the eurozone leadSocialisters, Greece can only draw on the aid fund as a "last resort" and under strict conditions.
"Any disbursement on the bilateral loans would be decided by the euro area member states by unanimity subject to strong conditionality and based on an assessment by the European Commission and the European Central Bank (ECB)." it said.
No decision has been taken to activate the mechanism as the Greek government has not requested any financial support, said the statement.
Van Rompuy told reporters that the lion's share of the aid would come from the European side as all eurozone countries had agreed to take part in the plan.
To avoid the reoccurrence of the Greek debt crisis, the president said the EU needs to strengthen surveillance of economic and budgetary risks and the instruments for prevention within the bloc.
Van Rompuy has been asked to establish a task force to present, by the end of the year, measures needed in this regard.
The two-day EU spring summit kicked off Thursday with the bloc's 2020 economic strategy and climate change being high on the agenda. The summit is the first formal one hosted by Van Rompuy since he took office at the beginning of this year.
The European Commission recently presented the Europe 2020 strategy, calling for smart, sustainable and inclusive growth for the EU by 2020. The new plan is supposed to replace the Lisbon Strategy, a 10-year blueprint adopted in 2000.
The new strategy is scheduled to be formally adopted in June by EU leaders.
Barroso said EU leaders discussed the strategy at their first working session and showed wide support, and were working on setting their national targets in the light of the headline targets in the strategy.
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