Deputy prime minister Yannis Dragasakis on Sunday said the leftist-rightist coalition government prefers a “self-sufficient exit into the markets after the end of the program”, a reference to the looming end of the third bailout in August 2018 and its accompanying low-interest loans by institutional creditors.
At the same time, Dragasakis, a veteran leftist lawmaker and economist, said a precautionary support program is not the Tsipras government’s preference, which he claimed would translate into “new taxes, as well as uncertainty over the future”.
Taking a distinctly technocratic assessment of the current situation, the high-ranking Cabinet member said interest rates for Greek bonds are now at pre-crisis levels, something he said reflects a positive outlook for the country.
In comments to the state broadcaster, he added the Greek government aims to create a “cushion” of around 18 billion euros for the period after the third consecutive memorandum ends — nine billion euros from the ESM and nine billion euros from test forays into capital markets, as he said.
