The Brussels Group met on Wednesday in Brussels to bridge the gap on open issues in ongoing negotiations between Greece and its international creditors from the European Commission, European Central Bank and International Monetary Fund. The group met on the same day that Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis defended his proposal for VAT reform from the podium of the Athens Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

“We are very flexible in the negotiations underway at the Brussels Group over VAT,’ he said. “We also have a Plan B and a Plan C.” He said that the proposal submitted was responsible and aimed at spurting growth while combating bureaucracy. He noted that institutions have been telling Greece to lower the number of VAT factors.

He estimated that an agreement would be reached by the first week of June whereas the initial plan had been for the deal to have been reached within four months. He said the delay was due to the fact that the institutions wanted a full evaluation so “we are now creating a set of prerequisites that will provide the foundation for the closure of the current program”.

Varoufakis also said that “an exit from the euro would be a one-way road that leads to the edge, but we won’t sign something that can’t add up. Let Europe do what it wants,” he said, placing the possibility of a clash with Greece’s EU partners on the table.