Negotiations and preparation for Greece’s exit from the bailout era – as the third memorandum program ends in August 2018 – are reportedly in the final stretch, in tandem with talks on whatever debt relief that creditors will extend to Athens.
According to reports out of Brussels, European creditors appear optimistic over a preliminary agreement with the IMF, during an informal Eurogroup meeting on April 27 in Sofia.
A Commission source this week said a EWG session on Thursday will serve as the venue for the Greek side to approach Eurozone technocrats over Athens’ growth strategy plan after the country’s exit from the third successive bailout program.
Specifically, Athens will reportedly again offer commitments that it will implement and apply already agreed to reforms in the post-bailout period, with a draft already sent to creditors.
A Commission spokesman on Tuesday, in fact, confirmed that communication was ongoing between creditors and the Greek coalition government.
In terms of the pending fourth, and last, review of the current memorandum program, creditors’ top auditors will return to Athens in mid May for the final stretch of negotiations.
The important dates on the calendar for the Greek program include:
April 12: A EWG meeting where the Greek draft plan for post-bailout growth and development will be unveiled.
April 20-22: Deliberations in Washington between European creditors and the IMF over the Greek debt issue.
April 23: Eurostat will announce figures for Greek GDP growth in 2017, the country’s debt and 2017 fiscal data.
April 27: Negotiations over a growth strategy and possibly an agreement, in principle, with the IMF on the debt.
May 24: A Eurogroup decision on the completion of negotiations regarding the fourth review of the current bailout.
June 21: A hoped for final agreement for more debt relief and the country’s exit from memorandum programs.
