ATHENS: Greece received the debt deal reached at the euro summit in Brussels on Monday over the terms of the third Greek bailout with mixed reactions of relief and disappointment.
Speaking to the media before his return here, Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras hailed the outcome, stressing that now scenarios of an imminent Greek default and Grexit were things of the past. The path to restore growth in the debt-laden country was paved with creditors’ further aid over the next three years, Xinhua quoted him as saying.
However, the leftist premier admitted that the framework of the 82-86 billion euro package ($91-95 billion) through the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) would be difficult to implement. But the alternative for Greece was a dive into chaos, stressed the government, and that a bad deal was better than no deal.
According to the official euro summit statement released in Brussels at the end of the marathon 17-hour talks, Greece must legislate starting as of Tuesday sets of harsh measures and reforms as prerequisites to the release of any aid.
