International Monetary Fund (IMF) Chief Christine Lagarde refered to Greece in an interview with seven large European newspapers, including Italy’s La Repubblica. Moises Naim writes that she is worried about the short-term prospects of the Greek economy and that a great deal of work still needs to be done for Greece to get back on track. She said that a spirit of cooperation is needed, noting that from her side there was a willingness for this.

She underlined that she believed the Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis’ pledge to pay off its debts to its international creditors prior to Thursday’s payment. She refered to a statement by Brazilian IMF representative Paulo Nogueira Batista that says that the IMF rules were violated in the case of Greece and adapted to suit the Eurozone’s needs. Lagarde states that these statements are inaccurate. She said that a study relevant to the public fiscal adjustment in various regions found that the efforts called for by Europeans were larger in bulk and content than those asked from other countries, such as those of the Middle East e.g. Jordan, Tunisia, Morocco.

The IMF Chief stated her concern that the cost of the crisis has burdened mainly low- and middle-income earners.