European Commissioner Pierre Moscovici offered up a “bitter pill” for Athens on Wednesday by stating that Greece would remain under fiscal supervision even after the current bailout program ends in August 2018.
In a written response to a question by Greek MEP Nikos Chountis, who switched ruling SYRIZA to the far-left and anti-bailout Popular Unity party after the third bailout was signed in August 2015, Moscovici said EU regulations apply until Athens pays off 75 percent of the financial support it has received from EU partners, the EFSM, ESM or the EFSF.
The French commissioner quoted EU Regulation No. 472/2013 , which states, among others, that ” … the same arrangements for surveillance should apply to Member States requesting precautionary assistance from one or several other Member States or third countries, the European Financial Stabilisation Mechanism (EFSM), the European Stability Mechanism (ESM), the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF), or another relevant international financial institution such as the International Monetary Fund (IMF).”
His response comes after several comments over the past few days with a decidedly pro-Athens stance.
