EU Commission Pierre Moscovici used a “success story” narrative following his meeting on Thursday with Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, as his visit here comes a day after a second post-bailout EU Commission report on Greece cited a “laundry list” of reforms and measures that Athens still has not completed.
Moscovici, among the struggling Tsipras government’s biggest boosters in Europe, said the “Commission wants to build a success story in Greece,” while offering kudos for a recovering Greek economy, significant fiscal performances and dropping unemployment.
In terms of “outstanding issues”, Moscovici said his talks with Tsipras touched on delays in selling-off lignite fired power units operated by the Public Power Corp. (PPC) as well as a new framework to protect eligible primary residences from creditors, among others.
He added that he received promises by the Greek side over the power units, while criteria for a new protection framework must ensure that Greece’s thrice bailed-out banking sector is protected from the specter “bad debt”.
The French Commissioner said all pending issues will be discussed at a March 11 Eurogroup meeting, where a decision will also be taken on whether a 970-million-euro tranche is released to Athens as part of a 2017 debt relief package.
On his part, Tsipras emphasized, with cameras rolling, that Greece is not within any new memorandum, with no directives in place to follow, but only “recommendations” made on the part of the Commission and European creditors.
