ATHENS: Greece officials said Tuesday the government reached an agreement with international creditors on terms for a new bailout.
Several details remained to be worked out, but the bulk of what is expected to be a $94 billion package was complete, the officials said. European Commission spokeswoman Annika Breidthardt, a key mediator of the talks, confirmed the progress on the bailout package, saying they have agreed “in principle” to broad terms.
“What we have at the moment is a technical level agreement reach by the staff of the institutions and the Greek authorities on the ground following the weeks of negotiations. What we do not have at the moment is a political agreement and that it what we would need. … [But] there are some small details that still need to be finalized,” Breidthardt said.
She added the final agreement requires approval from higher-level officials from the 28 EU member states. She said senior finance officials of the group would hold a conference call later Tuesday. Greece’s parliament is expected to vote on the measure by Thursday, with eurozone finance ministers potentially giving their support by Friday.
Greece needs the money by August 20 when it must repay about $3.5 billion in debt to the European Central Bank. Tuesday’s agreement includes setting fiscal targets with budget surpluses for the next three years, without factoring in debt payments.
Greece has been in financial turmoil for more than five years and has already received two earlier bailouts totaling more than $270 billion. In exchange, the government has instituted austerity measures and sweeping economic reforms demanded by creditors.
