European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker wants to scrap the troika mission, according to German daily Handelsblatt on Sunday.
“First, the Greeks caused a lot of mayhem last week. The messages from Athens became more conciliatory during the weekend. And now European Commission president Juncker is ready for a compromise – and Berlin will probably follow,” according to the newspaper’s report.
Handelsblatt sources said Juncker is planning to scrap the “troika” supervision for Greece, i.e. inspections by a joint team of EC, European Central Bank, and IMF technocrats. “We have to find an alternative quickly,” the report stated, citing sources from the EC.
The author of the article noted that Juncker agrees with the main demand of new Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras. “We could give up the review visits to Athens, which are perceived by the Greeks as degrading, and instead set more general financial and political targets for Greece,” a German government source was quoted as saying, adding that such a concession would only be possible if the new Greek government accepts an already agreed to scheme of reforms and austerity.