Schaeuble: A decision on Greece’s debt relief can only come in 2018

Next tranche is likely to be disbursed in the coming week, said Dijsselbloem

The Eurogroup meeting has started at 16:00 pm (GMT+2) and discussion is expected to be intense since there is still a great gap between Europeans and IMF, especially on the issue of Greek debt’s sustainability.

Arriving at the Eurogroup meeting to begin on May 24 in Brussels, Jeroen Dijsselbloem said that it is likely partners to proceed to the disbursement of the tranche in the coming weeks.

As for the reforms, Mr. Dijsselbloem said: “Today we will be informed if the reforms have been implemented correctly. I hope that there is a full agreement among the institutions and move on to the program”.

Moreover, he ruled out any possibility of a debt haircut saying: “There will be no haircut. What we will examine is the annual debt burden”.

Arriving for today’s meeting, German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble told reporters that there can be “no programme” for Greece without the IMF.

However, he said that a decision on Greece’s debt relief can only come in 2018, at the end of the bailout, which is later than the IMF is demanding.

Mr. Schaeuble, though, said he’s “optimistic” that these issues can be resolved.