Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras and German Chancellor Angela Merkel met for five hours in Berlin on Monday, in a backdrop of concerns that Athens may be running out of money.

“We want Greece to be strong economically. We want Greece to grow. Above all, we want Greece to overcome its high unemployment,” said Merkel at a press conference held mid-way through the talks prior to a working dinner. On his part, Tsipras said it was better to talk with each other rather than about each other. They seemed to be conciliatory but continued to be vague as to details concerning Greece’s real, substantial problems.

Both Tsipras and Merkel remained tight-lipped about the compromise agreement they made but Tsipras said Athens is seeking decisions that are beneficial to all sides. This means that the Greek Prime Minister will have to perform a balancing act that is in line with his vow to end austerity measures while also offering Greece’s international creditors free market overhals. So far, the Radical Left Coalition (SYRIZA) has failed to convince its international creditors that its reform measures go far enough.

The official dinner lasted for four hours.

Sphinx

The Greek side chooses to refer to what wasn’t discussed rather than what was said during the meeting, raising doubts as to its success. Joint statements by the two leaders were not clear-cut. Merkel repeated her mantra that real progress would be made at the finance ministers’ level. Bailout funds for Greece are still locked, however the meeting did work towards bringing the two leaders closer together.

There was a tone of mutual respect. Tsipras turned on the charm and was mild in his presentation of matters that are annoying to Berlin, such as German war reparations. On her part, Merkel was patient, polite and prudent in her statements.

Greek sources said the meeting has led to the identification of a general framework of cooperation and seeking an agreement that would open gradual funding to Greece. There is also a fear, however, that the gap between both sides is extremely distant and cannot easily be bridged unless Tsipras retreats and adapts to the painful demands being made by the country’s international lenders.

The positives of the meeting

– open communication with the motto of both leaders now being to “talk with each other than about each other.”
– political tensions were defused after the fiery rhetoric fired between both countries. German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble’s media attacks against Athens subsided prior to the meeting, whereas the Greek government has also lowered its tones.
– The Greek side was given the opportunity to bring up a number of controversial issues. Tsipras refered to the Siemens scandal and asked for Germany’s judicial cooperation in thsi regard. He also refered to the failed memorandums of the past. He outlined the failure of former prime minister Antonis Samaras’ austerity policies.
– Tsipras stood beside the German leader and demanded war reparations over Nazi atrocities in Greece. “It’s not a material matter, it’s a moral issue,” he said. it was believed to be the first time a foreign leader had gone to Berlin to make such a demand. Merkel appeared irritated stating that the matter was politically and legally closed but she also said that Berlin would not “ignore” the issue.

Τhe negatives of the meeting

– The meeting did not open funds to Greece, nor was there an answer as to how Berlin views the reforms proposals of Greece.
– Merkel appeared irritated that the Nazi war loan was brought up.

Τhe question marks

The Radical Left Coalition (SYRIZA) may view the more moderate turn that Tsipras’ showed in Berlin as a step away from the party’s core values. The party’s left platform will not be pleased. Tsipras said that Greece and Germany would continue to cooperate at a technical level, however he did not specify exactly what these meant. Tsipras also recognized that there were some positive steps made in recent years, something that could be interpreted to mean that the Memorandum’s catastrophic consequences may be forgiven to some extent. There are still question marks concerning how far Greece is willing to give regarding international creditors demands.

Invitation

Tsipras had the chance to return Merkel’s invitation, however the date and agenda of the meeting was not set.

Continued meetings: Tuesday’s agenda

– 10:15 A. Tsipras will meet with German Foreign Minister Frank Walter Steinmeier.
– 11.15 Die Linke Chairperson Katja Kipping and the party’s General Secretary Gregor Gysi .
– 14:30 Vice-Chancellor Sigmar Gabriel.
– 16:00 Meeting with Greens Presidents Cem Oezdemir, Simone Peter και Ska Keller.
– 12:30 A.Tsipras visits the Holocaust Memorial in Berlin.