German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble insists that the discussion for a possible Greek debt relief might take place after 2018, even though he has already expressed his optimism regarding an agreement between Greece and its leaders in Eurogroup meeting to be held on May 24.

“What was decided was that if in 2018, after the program concludes, and after possibly a necessary use of the contingency mechanism, there’s still a need to financially support the Greek budget, then we can discuss measures concerning debt,” said Martin Jaeger , spokesman of the German Finance Minister, in a statement, while yesterday Mr. Schaeuble estimated that now “there is no need for a real haircut of the Greek debt” and explained that Greece does not have to worry about the debt burden for ten years.

At a dinner organized by Handelsblatt in honor of Mr. Schaeuble, the German Finance Minister said that in case the debt sustainability has not been achieved in the medium term, “we will examine the issue again”.