Greece: debt, creditors, austerity measures, Syriza, Varoufakis, Troika

[Mr.Cyan]

spyraal, i share your sense of deep disappointment too - however as Alana mentioned, this is indeed truly Hunger Games, and we must always remember who the real enemy is. The aim here will be to break free from the Arena through non-violence, and really take the "battle" to the Game Masters; which i think is best expressed though this quote from John Lennon :

“When it gets down to having to use violence, then you are playing the system’s game. The establishment will irritate you – pull your beard, flick your face – to make you fight. Because once they’ve got you violent, then they know how to handle you. The only thing they don’t know how to handle is non-violence and humor.” ~John Lennon

Latest update from RT on the situation:
‘Issues of credibility & trust’: Eurogroup adjourns without reaching Greece deal'
http://rt.com/news/273172-greece-debt-deal-eurogroup/

From the news :

“We are still a long way out, both on the issue of content as on the tougher issue of trust,” Dijsselbloem said just before the meeting. “On paper it is not good enough yet – and even if it is good on paper, then we still have the question: will it really happen?”

sigh !...same old story - different day ! Like Groundhog day - and the psycho's really are not that creative at all...

 

[loreta]

I understand your frustration, spyraal, and your deception. Be aware, it is my point of vue and very personal, of these emotions. What the PTB wanted is that these emotions explode in the people and produce a chaos in the country. I don't know if Tsipras is a traitor or not, what I am sure is that bankers are sharks and will do anything to kill people or their images as traitors. The guilty ones are the bankers and all the Troika and some countries that are as guilty as the bankers. Thank you for giving us your vision of the situation. Take care.

 

[SeekinTruth]

Yeah, I agree that there is the very real danger of trying to create a situation similar to the one in the Ukraine. Also, I think it's still too early to tell what's really going on. No need to jump to conclusions, although I understand the deep disappointment, frustration, and sense of betrayal by the Greek people (including spyraal). Let's just see what happens in the near future, and then longer term. Because there seems to be many things going on in the background behind closed doors (including Greece expressing interest in joining BRICS and free trade deals with the Eurasian Union, if it turns out to be true).

Also read this morning that they want to expel Greece from the Eurozone for 5 years and are accusing Athens of destroying the trust within the Union.

Here are a couple of good reads that apply to the Greece situation too.

A good article translated from Russian about the BRICS and SCO summits:
http://thesaker.is/brics-and-sco-to-replace-pace-and-osce/

The world situation report includes lots of article links about Greece with different, opposing views, and also in the comments section, there tend to be some good links (haven't gone through them all yet).
http://thesaker.is/july-12th-weekly-world-and-ukraine-sitrep-by-baaz/

 

[Cosmos]

A pretty interesting "slip" of the financial system about the future of greece?

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-07-09/first-sighting-of-drachma-in-the-wild-via-credit-card-mystery

First Sighting of Drachma in the Wild, Via Credit-Card Mystery

Long-Feared Currency Makes Fleeting Appearance on Reporter's Bill

Ladies and gentlemen, behold the first sighting of the new Greek drachma:

Between June 28 and July 4 at a Hilton hotel in Athens, transactions on a Bloomberg reporter's Visa credit card issued by Citigroup Inc. were posted as being carried out in ``Drachma EQ."

The inexplicable notation -- bear in mind, the euro remains Greece's official currency -- flummoxed two very polite customer service representatives and spokesmen for the companies involved. It depicts a currency changeover that the Greek government and European officials have been working for over six months to avoid.

Banks around the world are bracing for the increasingly real possibility that Greece may be forced to abandon the euro, a currency it shares with 18 other European countries. European negotiators have given Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras until Sunday to work out a final deal of austerity and economic reforms in return for more financing.

Citigroup and Visa Inc. declined to comment. A Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. spokeswoman said that the Athens hotel had billed the customer in euros, not drachmas.

The amount was the same as it would have been in euros, implying parity with the single currency -- a possibility that economists have discounted as unlikely. Were Greece forced to reintroduce the drachma, its value would likely fall quickly versus global currencies, given the imbalance between Greek imports and exports and its economically unsure future.

Figuring out how the currency switch happened proved fruitless, in part because of the nature of the credit-card business. Each time a consumer swipes a card, information passes between four parties: a merchant, the merchant's bank, a network like Visa or MasterCard Inc. and the consumer's bank.

The merchant's bank -- called an acquirer -- works directly with a store, restaurant or hotel to help them accept cards, and processes transactions on their behalf by exchanging funds with the consumer's issuing bank via a network. Hilton declined to provide the name of its acquirer.
While computer systems at banks and credit-card processors would have to adapt quickly to allow cross-border transactions in a new drachma, the introduction of paper money would take a longer. Introducing a new currency typically takes at least six months and sometimes as long as two years, Ralf Wintergerst, head of banknote production at Giesecke & Devrient GmbH, a Munich company that has printed banknotes since the days of Germany's Reichsmark in the 1920s, said last week.

The response to the drachma billing mystery was more rapid. A day after Bloomberg began making calls asking about what might have happened, the reporter's online statement was changed. It now looks like this:

.

Notice especially what the woman says starting at 00:53 in the video in the link above. It seems to be pretty unlikely that it was just an error where somebody just pushed the wrong button. It's more likely that someone between the four parties (more likely all parties), that are needed for a transaction of a visa card, had that scenario already in mind, or there is already a system in place that lists greece currency as Drachma...

What do you think?

 

[spyraal]

To what end, Spyraal?

A lot of people say, "I have nothing to lose" until they realize that there is always more to lose.

It's the Hunger Games, Spyraal. Remember who the real enemy is. When all is said and done inside the arena (and me, you, the Tsipras' government, the people of Greece are all disposable players inside the arena), when all the blood has been shed inside the arena, it will be controlled still by the Game Masters outside. The more the chaos and blood produced in the arena, the happier the Masters. And nobody will care what happens to Greece, like nobody cares what happens to Ukraine, or Gaza, or Iraq or Libya, or any of these poor places that have been destroyed for a psychopathic whim.

Unfortunately, I haven't seen the "Hunger Games" but I am overall aware about what it's all about. But I don't think the real world situation is 100% accurately reflected by this comparison. The PTB still have to care for the public opinion in their own countries and maintaining a facade of "democracy", legitimacy and rule of "law of Justice". Their grasp on the world is not yet that overt, we still don't live in a full blown totalitarian dystopia. If Tsipras finally proves that weak so to surrender Greece to the Masters, people have still a great many things to do. And one of the most effective things they can do, is the idea of a long term general civil disobedience strike. Greek people have been working on this scenario for some time now, all that was lacking was the sense of unity, empowerment and determination. And this is exactly what the recent referendum offered. If there was ever a time, it is now. This means no more going to work, no more paying taxes, all people blocking the streets 24/7, civil occupation of the most critical ministries and public services that make the state work, turning them into "castles" and guarding them with whatever means available. No government can last for more than a few weeks or at most a couple of months of that. If Greek people managed to say OXI after 6 years of conditioning, poverty, media propaganda and as recently closed banks, then they might as well make it. A people united and determined is by no means easy do deal with. Will they try to suppress this kind of civil movement? Of course they will. But they will have to blow whatever is left of their facade. And they don't have the man-power to fight and suppress millions of people all at once. That is why they have been pulling strings hidden in the shadows up to now. They want our country, our lives and our future? "Molon labe" as Leonidas with his 300 Spartans said to Xerxis and his million strong army. Which means "come and get it". Of course all of the 300 died in that battle. But their brave stand united the Greeks and their city-states, and their combined struggle actually defeated the mighty Persian Empire at the end. And today, some 2500 years into the future, we still know and talk about their deeds.

The way I see things, sometimes one has to make a stand even against overwhelming odds. Showing the kind of bravery and defiance that comes from having a moral skeleton should not be depending on the force of the opponent. In Greek the word for "human" is "anthropos"(άνθρωπος) which means to "aim higher" or to "look above" or in more words to aim towards higher states of being and higher principals and values. If we are to give up our right to being called "anthropos" then I really see no point in trying to make my prime objective to sustain my being and existence in this world while living in fear like a slave, or hidden in the cozy bubble of my house reading books while my fellow people suffer until my own turn comes. By then I will probably be weak and broken too. I am not trying to make a needless sacrifice of myself. I am not going to aimlessly throw myself into the lion's mouth. If I were a 4th density being where supposedly the laws of physicality are less strict, then maybe I could vanish in thin air and avoid all these things. But since I was born in 3rd density, the crude physicality of this level of existence involves from making love to making war. Caesar himself was among other things a general and a warrior involved in bloody battles, and yet as it seems he made it to higher densities. So "to what end?" you ask. To whatever end I will answer. I might be wrong or even a fool, but I know I am true to my soul's calling, my nature and my nurture as Hellinas. All is lessons after all, and this may be part of mine own lessons. I wish too that things won't have to go that far, but even if they do, I will make my choices out of my free will while being a free man until the end. So I hope we shall tell the Masters, "You Shall Not Pass!" and whatever may be, may be.

But, I think that is enough about me. I don't want to highjack this thread that deals with a bigger picture and not myself. And let us not forget "the future is open"!

Thank you,
:)

 

[SeekinTruth]

All you say is well and true, spyraal. But the point to keep in mind is that there are still possibilities (such as the military being infiltrated with agents of the Empire) that can take a situation of proper resistance and turn it into chaos and coup d'etat / martial law, etc. Just want to make sure that you and others who want to do "the right thing" take all that into consideration and act strategically to make the best outcome possible. But I still think that it's too early to know what's really going on and who's trying to do what. But I think we'll find out soon enough. Take care and best wishes to you and your people.

 

[seek10]

Notice especially what the woman says starting at 00:53 in the video in the link above. It seems to be pretty unlikely that it was just an error where somebody just pushed the wrong button. It's more likely that someone between the four parties (more likely all parties), that are needed for a transaction of a visa card, had that scenario already in mind, or there is already a system in place that lists greece currency as Drachma...

What do you think?

My guess is it is a IT glitch. It is customary for the corporations to pro-actively identify, plan, test( IT systems) for probability (or eventuality) of change in policies before final production deployment whenever it becomes essential. It is common to notify all the parties in advance and prepare for change. Production deployment timing could be any thing from a day to years or never. For me the clue is 1:1 ratio between greek currency to Euro. some body is testing it which is expected. Given that software development and operations are outsourced to companies across the world, there may be some miscommunication between the IT guys before this change went into production. It is quite possible bankers might have made decision to switch the currencies, but generally it will not trickle down to IT production(final) systems immediately until law is passed. There is another possibility that some body deliberately leaked it(in the form of bill) for some purpose. More data like how many people saw this issue , when released etc. will help to understand it. If more people got it means, this IT system level issue.

 

[Foxx]

Notice especially what the woman says starting at 00:53 in the video in the link above. It seems to be pretty unlikely that it was just an error where somebody just pushed the wrong button. It's more likely that someone between the four parties (more likely all parties), that are needed for a transaction of a visa card, had that scenario already in mind, or there is already a system in place that lists greece currency as Drachma...

What do you think?

My guess is it is a IT glitch. It is customary for the corporations to pro-actively identify, plan, test( IT systems) for probability (or eventuality) of change in policies before final production deployment whenever it becomes essential. It is common to notify all the parties in advance and prepare for change. Production deployment timing could be any thing from a day to years or never. For me the clue is 1:1 ratio between greek currency to Euro. some body is testing it which is expected. Given that software development and operations are outsourced to companies across the world, there may be some miscommunication between the IT guys before this change went into production. It is quite possible bankers might have made decision to switch the currencies, but generally it will not trickle down to IT production(final) systems immediately until law is passed. There is another possibility that some body deliberately leaked it(in the form of bill) for some purpose. More data like how many people saw this issue , when released etc. will help to understand it. If more people got it means, this IT system level issue.

This is along the lines of what I was thinking--if the Greek government was being practical and preparing for various possibilities, then they would probably be setting up an alternate system in the background, which could then be switched on when necessary, or not, and a glitch could have caused that. It could also be a forgery--it's incredibly easy to fake screenshots. I suspect that they're at least most likely preparing for the possibility of switching to the Drachma.

 

[Alana]

And one of the most effective things they can do, is the idea of a long term general civil disobedience strike. Greek people have been working on this scenario for some time now, all that was lacking was the sense of unity, empowerment and determination. And this is exactly what the recent referendum offered. If there was ever a time, it is now. This means no more going to work, no more paying taxes, all people blocking the streets 24/7, civil occupation of the most critical ministries and public services that make the state work, turning them into "castles" and guarding them with whatever means available. No government can last for more than a few weeks or at most a couple of months of that.

Ok, so you get rid of the current government. But with who/what do you replace it?

Did you read what Varoufakis wrote about why no grexit now? http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2015/jul/10/germany-greek-pain-debt-relief-grexit

Or this?

Russia is considering sending direct deliveries of fuel to Greece to help prop up its economy, Energy Minister Alexander Novak said Sunday, quoted by Russian news agencies.

"Russia intends to support the revival of Greece's economy by broadening cooperation in the energy sector. Accordingly we are studying the possibility of organising direct deliveries of energy resources to Greece, starting shortly," Novak told journalists, quoted by RIA Novosti news agency.

Read more: http://www.businessinsider.com/afp-russia-considering-direct-fuel-deliveries-to-help-greece-minister-2015-7#ixzz3fh7OOQW2

Like you say, the future is indeed open.

 

[spyraal]

Ok, so you get rid of the current government. But with who/what do you replace it?

After this, the plan for Greece would be to have a major constitutional reform. Actually Greece needs a brand new Constitution. It needs a legal and moral Rebirth. This would first facilitate to refute any further payments for the odious public debt, but I won't elaborate more on that now. But also it would be an opportunity for a new start, a major reset of all the tweaks and legal provisions inserted and imposed during all these past decades to serve the agenda of corrupt governments. Much like what Iceland tried to do, in the so called "crowd-sourced" constitutional draft. The new constitution of Iceland was written and edited by the people, approved through a referendum, but was ultimately stopped by the Parliament (no wonder). One can check out the Icelandic experience here http://www.slate.com/articles/technology/future_tense/2014/07/five_lessons_from_iceland_s_failed_crowdsourced_constitution_experiment.2.html

Greeks should go one step further by re-instating real Democracy in it's true and original form, called also Direct Democracy, by abolishing current form of Representative Democracy that most Westerns countries use up to now and actually is but a farce. That would put an end to the political parties and the false choices and dichotomies they represent. In the original Athenian democracy, random citizens were elected for a short term service to hold government positions. These randomly elected citizens had no power to make policies on their own. They would just follow and execute the decision of the Assembly of Citizens. The only other modern version of direct democracy in today's terms, we can find in Switzerland, where citizens are called about 4 times a year through direct vote and referendums to decide for the government policies. (check: Voting in Switzerland in Wikipedia). Greece, being the birthplace of Democracy has all the background and know-how do this, more than any other nation potentially. And the country is about the right size too. And actually, there has been a lot of groundwork already done in Greece in that direction by various groups and individuals.

So people don't really need professional politicians to represent them, Leftist or Right wing parties, and the lot. They only need a framework of real and Direct Democracy, a constitution that is made to serve them and not the elites. This is the only way to go for Greece, for both practical and historical reasons. And on the smoking ruins of the current political system and our almost destroyed country, we have the perfect opportunity for a true rebirth of Democracy. Because only Direct Democracy equals real People Power. This is the goal.

 

[luke wilson]

Spyraal, it's very sad what is happening...

But you need to understand the nature of the beast. It is global and all encompassing and pathological to the highest degree. These people do things that are truly beyond words. They bring upon others pain, horror and suffering that boggles the mind.

You need to understand that it is nice wishing for a better world, for your nation to be free but right now, it's just a matter of survival. You cannot take on the animal. Millions of people cannot take on this animal. It is well versed in handling such situations and they have nothing holding them back. Nightmares, the unthinkable can become real and does become real for those who dare to stand up to this creature and those who just happen to be at the wrong place at the wrong time.

Don't look at Putin, don't look at Russia.... they are different... don't look at China... Greece is a small country and any citizens who march against the animal will be subject to violence especially when the final papers are rubber stamped. Those who die will soon be forgotten and the world will continue as it always does. The best you can do is survive, witness and learn. Maybe in future, opportunities might arise where you can do something, but now is not it, not in the way you are thinking... they will crash you and anything that stands in their way.

If riots happen in Greece, please be as far away from them as you can be. You don't want to play such games and this is not the time. The course cannot be changed now, you know it can't, you have to be patient and wait. All it will be will be an expression of anger and blood offerings to the gods, to 4D STS, food for the moon. The only thing to happen will be to sacrifice yourself as if a goat or a sheep to a higher power. They will not hesitate to feast upon those who offer themselves in such ways.

 

[mabar]

If riots happen in Greece, please be as far away from them as you can be. You don't want to play such games and this is not the time. The course cannot be changed now, you know it can't, you have to be patient and wait. All it will be will be an expression of anger and blood offerings to the gods, to 4D STS, food for the moon. The only thing to happen will be to sacrifice yourself as if a goat or a sheep to a higher power. They will not hesitate to feast upon those who offer themselves in such ways.

While reading/searching more about Greece crisis, I ended up with a --seeems to be a trading topic called #This is a coup, against Greece. I had being reading/observing to be in several Greek's news site. And here, _http://news247.gr/eidiseis/kosmos/diethnis-politiki/thisisacoup-pagkosmia-katakraygh-gia-to-praksikophma-ths-merkel-se-varos-ths-elladas.3572129.html, there are several twits linking/citing that hashtag directed to Spiegel Online.

_http://www.spiegel.de/wirtschaft/soziales/griechenland-euro-gruppe-legt-extrem-harte-forderungen-vor-a-1043306.html
Calling the Proposals of the Euro Group: The catalog of atrocities
(there seems to be several translation issues about the word "Grausamkeiten" mentioned here:_https://twitter.com/alauraschneider/status/620320309028220928/photo/1, at the end, the Eurogroup intention against Greece is well known.

There was also a "mistake" from fox newsland about IFM asking Tsipras to resign, here: _http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2015-07-12/better-be-mistake

Spiral, as luke wilson says, be safe. Lets hope it does not escalate in something worst for the people of Greece, it reminded me of those "arab springs" originating from social networks.

 

[mabar]

Read this article http://www.sott.net/article/298936-Russia-considering-direct-energy-supplies-to-Greece-in-near-future, and went to find more about requisite from IFM over Greece about privetizations, and found this intersting article, in which my "generalized short cut dot connecting" made some direct links.

Athens opposes EU energy strategy, blocks privatisations
20 Mar 2015 - 12:26 updated: 01 Apr 2015 - 15:08

The Syriza-led government will be against an Energy Union that undermines Greece's national interests, including in its relations with Russia, said Greek energy minister Panagiotis Lafazanis, who also ruled out any privatisation schemes for the country’s energy sector.

Lafazanis, who belongs to the leftist wing of the Syriza party, said that Athens is not willing to follow EU’s energy strategy as it currently stands.

He made the comments at the Athens Energy Forum 2015 conference last week (11-12 March), ahead of a scheduled meeting of Greek PM Alexis Tsipras and Russian President Vladimir Putin on 8 April, in Moscow,

“We generally don’t question the declared objectives of Energy Union, but we do doubt whether the means being proposed can succeed or, on the contrary, will end up reinforcing the inequalities and painful economic and social complications currently prevailing in the eurozone and the EU,” Lafazanis said.

One of the key elements of the Energy Union is that member states’ energy deals with non-EU nations should be scrutinised by the European Commission before they are signed. Russia has always insisted that those deals are confidential.

It is also envisaged that the EU will diversify its energy sources through the Southern Gas Corridor, in an effort to decrease its energy dependence on Moscow.

Echoing Hungarian leader Viktor Orbán, the Greek minister made clear that such a provision undermines the national sovereignty of the country and rules out any kind of “flexibility” toward the implementation of energy policies in accordance with national interests.

>> Read: Orbán says EU’s Energy Union is a threat to Hungary

“Greece will not become a dependent pawn of unilateral energy choices or axes, in the name of the alleged diversity of EU’s energy supplies,” Lafazanis emphasised last week in a speech in Athens Energy Forum.

Greece was among the EU member states that had signed an intergovernmental agreement with Gazprom on South Stream, a project finally scrapped by Moscow. The southern branch of the pipeline, which was to have had Greece as a possible endpoint, had already been abandoned prior to the pipeline's cancellation.

>> Read: Russia says South Stream project is over

The previous coalition government had aligned with Commission’s decision to review all energy-related intergovernmental agreements, in order to verify their compatibility with EU law.

Privatisations and energy market

In the meantime, Greek authorities have announced that the privatization process of the Greek energy market, a commitment also made by the previous government towards international lenders, and a crucial term of the bailout, will stop.

The previous coalition, center-right New Democracy and the Socialist Pasok, had committed themselves to privatising the energy sector. However, the Syriza-led government will keep it under state control.

Natural gas importer and distributor (DEPA), and electricity company Public Power Corporation S.A. (PPC) are both controlled by the Greek government.

Proposals for the privatisation of DEPA and PPC have been “abandoned”, according to Lafazanis.

DEPA had also been a political “headache” for the previous government, which was willing to privatise it.

But ahead of the tender, only Russia’s Gazprom expressed interest before backing down, reportedly after being warned that the deal would be blocked by the Commission.

Regarding Greece's gas transmission operator (DESFA), a 66% stake was acquired by Azerbaijan's state-owned oil and gas producer SOCAR, with the remaining 34% remaining in the hands of the Greek government.

DESFA’s privatisation helped the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), which is part of the Southern Gas Corridor, to win its bid for Azeri gas over its competitor, Nabucco.

But the deal is currently being scrutinized by the European Commission to see if it is compatible with EU law, and Azerbaijan has expressed its concern over the delay.

>> Read: Aliyev: Azerbaijan concerned by Commission’s DESFA investigation

Azeri SOCAR has already granted an advance payment guarantee that expires in June 2015. According to the terms of the tender in 2013, a “safe exit” from the deal is only possible for SOCAR after June 2015, on the condition that the sale is not completed.

Athens is waiting for the Commission’s investigation to make its final decision on DESFA’s privatisation, according to Lafazanis, who avoided elaborating on the issue.

The Greek government has expressed its support for the TAP project, but finds it “fair and reasonable" to seek offsets from its passage from Greece. Sources told EurActiv that this particular intergovernmental agreement includes such a provision.

A turn to Moscow?

Lafazanis also hinted that Athens has its eyes open for cooperation with other non-EU countries.

After he clarified that Greece was not an energy “satellite” of any big power, he said that it was pursuing “multidimensional energy relations with all the countries of our region and in Europe”, specifying the “wider geographical definition of the latter”.

The pro-Russia stance does not come as a surprise.

The first clash of the Greek coalition government with the EU was over Russia, opposing tougher sanctions against Moscow for its role in the Ukraine crisis.

>> Read: Tsipras has first clash with EU – over Russia

But Syriza’s intentions were made pretty clear before the national elections in Greece. Syriza MEPs had initially opposed the signing of the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement, which irked Moscow, and abstained from backing a similar deal between the EU and Moldova.

“Having another solution on the table, I think, is helpful,” Greek Defence Minister Panos Kammenos said this week, adding that rumors about Greece’s close relations with Russia “have a basis”.

In a recent interview with EurActiv Greece though, leading Syriza MEP Dimitris Papadimoulis, had stated that Syriza government would never “leave Europe for the cute eyes of Mr Putin”.

US warns against monopoly regime ---it has to be!!

Speaking at the same conference, former US Ambassador Matthew Bryza, now Director of the International Centre for Defence Studies, warned Greece against turning its domestic gas market back to a monopoly regime at the expense of Greek consumers.

"I heard the Minister of Energy emphasise the need for a multidirectional energy policy and the major powers not to exploit small ones. We have no objection. If these are the goals of Greece, the worst thing to do is to step back in(to) the Southern Gas Corridor and return to the monopoly that led Greece to pay for natural gas more expensive than anywhere else in Europe.”

Indeed, according to Eurostat, Greek consumers pay 35% more for natural gas than the rest of the EU.

Greece imports 65% of its annual gas needs from Russia, and despite a deal for a gas price reduction by 15% last year between DEPA and Gazprom, debt-ridden Greeks keep on paying the highest bill in Europe.

According to analysts, the monopoly regime of DEPA, controlling 90% of the wholesale and 51% of the retail market, has helped it dominate he market and make excessive profits.

According to Kathimerini, for the last three years, DEPA has ensured excessive profits despite a significant decline in demand (€146.7 million in 2013, €106.3 million in 2012 and €190.2 million in 2011).

BACKGROUND

Greece secured a four-month extension of its financial rescue on 24 February, when its eurozone partners approved an economic reform plan that backed down on key measures and promised that spending to alleviate social distress would not derail its budget.

>> Read: Eurozone approves Greek reform plan with reservations

Germany's rejection of an initial Greek request for a six-month loan extension forced Athens into a string of politically sensitive concessions, postponing or backing away from campaign promises to reverse austerity, scrap the bailout and end cooperation with the "troika" of EU, ECB and IMF inspectors.

>> Read: Greece, eurozone agree to four-month loan extension, avert crunch

This other articles is good too, there were previous approachments between Greece and Russia in which the EU did not liked, back in January._http://www.euractiv.com/sections/europes-east/tsipras-has-first-clash-eu-over-russia-311616

 

[Mr.Cyan]

Thanks mabar, also the latest updates on the Greece from RT:

Bailout or time-out? Athens may be offered 'temporary' Grexit in case of no deal
http://rt.com/news/273247-greece-timeout-bailout-grexit/

....i guess the situation is now tense in Greece :(, as the new deal conditions are significantly worse than the previous ones - and this comes after Tsipras already making significant concessions and facing dissension and disappointment after convincing the Greek parliament to approve the earlier package.

The Empire's ultimatum is either this "savage" package or the highway (Grexit) - typical psychopatic thinking as the "revenge" for the referendum outcome. While this was not unexpected, it is disheartening to know that they are now dropping their mask and going for the chaos option. Also the Empire seems to think that it can "punish" Greece either way through more further severe austeriry, or from the chaos of Grexit. All signs also indicating that Germany prefers the Grexit option. They also probably assume that they will be able to manage the Grexit while ensuring more suffering for the Greek people - i think this could be wishfull thinking, and if/when Grexit happens, as Perceval mentioned this could be the start of the unravelling of the global financial system.

The alternative would be for Greece to accept these conditions and stay within the EU - considering that 61% voted OXI - then we have a tense situation where the country is deeply divided, and conditions for the Empire to initiate a colour revolution/regime change present. Golden Dawn is still active in Greek politics and this is a concern too.

Another option would be Grexit with full support of Russia/China BRICS - as discussed previously on this thread, but one really cant say now how exactly this is going to pan out. The future is definitely open and fluid - and i only hope that things go well for Greece and Syriza reaches for support to their Eurasian allies.

 

[casper]

8:56 The President of the European Council, Donald Tusk announced on Twitter that the agreement with Greece reached unanimously, and that everyone is ready for application of the European Stability Mechanism (ESM). Tusk announces serious reforms and financial support.
08:45 - Did Greece and creditors finally agreed? Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel on Twitter has left short and pretty clear message: "agreement".