V. Kostoulas
[email protected]
IMF sources told “N” this week that the Fund’s managing director, Christine Lagarde, has accepted an invitation by the Greek president to visit the country. Nevertheless, the same sources said no date has as yet been set.
Previous reports mentioned that Lagarde would visit still bailout-dependent Greece within the month, although both the president’s office and the finance ministry declined to confirm or even deny such a prospect.
Speculation over the date of a possible Lagarde visit to Athens is linked with the Fund’s stance vis-à-vis the pending negotiations to conclude the third review of the ongoing Greek bailout program. The IMF has pressed for various reforms and actions by the Greek side that either leave European creditors indifferent or even clash with their own positions, such as the IMF’s insistence that a fourth recapitalization of Greek banks is necessary.
As such, both sides – official Athens and the IMF – are seen as trying to find an auspicious date and timing for the Lagarde visit.
