Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras is in Riga, Latvia, on Thursday and Friday for the European Council. Greek hopes are pinned on the sidelines of the EU leaders’ meeting when Tsipras is due to have talks with German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande, aimed at achieving the political impetus required for negotiations between the leftist government and its lenders to conclude successfully by the end of May.
The Radical Left Coalition (SYRIZA) government had hoped talks would be included on the agenda of the council, however, the request was denied — with the focus of the meeting being on issues related to eastern Europe. Even so, a gesture by Merkel and Hollande could go a long way in influencing deliberations with Greece’s creditors from the European Commission, European Central Bank and International Monetary Fund.
Good signs
Both Merkel and Hollande both expressed the desire for an acceleration to negotiations so they could be wrapped up as soon as possible.
The government is hoping that European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker’s compromise solution can be adopted, despite the fact that Juncker denied the specific initiative that offers Greece a deal of around 5 billion euros in loans in exchange for a package of structural reforms.
Everybody agrees, however, that if there is no progress in Riga, then the course of negotiations could take a negative turn as the government will not be able to meet its obligations to the IMF on June 5.
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