German Finance Minister Wolfgang Shaeuble told German tabloid Bild that difficult talks are ahead regardless of the result of the Referendum being held in Greece on July 5. The deal, following the Referendum to decide on creditors’ reforms, will not be a quick one, but he pledged that the Greek people would not be left in the lurch:

Greece is a member of the eurozone. There’s no doubt about that. Whether with the euro or temporarily without it: only the Greeks can answer this question. And it is clear that we will not leave the people in the lurch.

He pointed to a limited risk of contagion. Even if a small number of individual banks collapsed, the market restraint over the last few days indicates that the situation would be manageable.

He rejected the notion of an aid-for-reforms deal that the Greek Radical Left Coalition (SYRIZA) government would desire.

On a more positive note, Schaeuble said that in a year from now Europe would be stronger than it was prior to the Greek crisis.