Facing tremendous odds, but it is clear at this point they are serious about their political program. No running on the left, then swerveing to the right after being elected. I know that applause is a trivial response, and if there is serious work to be done to support them I will do as much of it as lies within my power. But given a bit of good news for a change, I am going to take a moment to applaud, because it feels damn good to have someone besides have a victory for a change rather than a gallant defeat. No predictions about how long it will last, or how much of what they seek they can obtain. But for the moment but for the moment we have a victory, something to celebrate.
On Wed, Jan 28, 2015 at 9:55 AM, Louis Proyect <[email protected]> wrote: > "Adding to the uncertainty was a report that Mr. Tsipras had basically > frozen Greece’s privatization program, which had been a central demand > of creditors in approving the country’s international bailouts. The > troika had expected Greece to raise tens of billions of euros to pay its > debts by privatizing state assets." > > NY Times, Jan. 28 2015 > Tsipras’s Debt Plan Sends Athens Stock Market Sliding > By LIZ ALDERMAN > > ATHENS — The Athens stock market continued its steep slide, and interest > rates on Greek bonds spiked further on Wednesday, as investors > anticipated difficult negotiations between the new Syriza-led government > in Greece and the country’s creditors. > > Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras told his new cabinet on Wednesday that he > would move swiftly to negotiate debt relief, but would not engage in a > confrontation with creditors that would jeopardize a more just solution > for the country. > > “We are ready to negotiate with our own plan,” he told his ministers. > “We will not seek a catastrophic solution, but neither will we consent > to a policy of submission.” > > Later, the new finance minister, Yanis Varoufakis, appeared to harden > the tone, saying that Greece’s bailout deals were “a toxic mistake” and > that the new government was determined to change the logic of how the > crisis had been tackled. > > Mr. Varoufakis said the new government would seek a “Pan-European New > Deal” that would be a bridge between previous agreements and a new > arrangement with creditors, although he did not elaborate on what such a > plan would look like. > > While many Greeks were hopeful that Mr. Tsipras would follow through > with even a fraction of his populist promises, investors were more > rattled. The Athens Stock Exchange, which already had billions of euros > in value wiped out during Greece’s election campaign, fell around 7.5 > percent in midday trading on Wednesday after slumping around 11 percent > on Tuesday. Shares in financial companies in Greece plummeted more than > 17 percent on Wednesday. > > The interest rate on Greek 10-year government bonds increased on > Wednesday nearly 1 percentage point, to about 10.2 percent, with > investors apparently wary of a possible debt restructuring. The yields > were at 8.4 percent before the election and below 6 percent for most of > the summer, as the Greek economy appeared poised to grow again under the > prime minister at the time, Antonis Samaras. > > European Union officials also outlined a tough-sounding position on > Wednesday before what would no doubt be long negotiations over the terms > of Greece’s bailout and an effort by the new government to reduce the > country’s mountain of debt. > > Since 2010, the so-called troika of lenders — the European Central Bank, > the European Commission and the International Monetary Fund — has > extended Greece two bailouts worth €240 billion, or about $270 billion. > > The vice president of the European Commission, Jyrki Katainen, said that > Brussels was eager to start talks with Greece. But noting that he saw no > majority in favor of writing off any Greek debt, he added: “We expect > them to fulfill everything that they have promised to fulfill.” > > He emphasized that Brussels could not simply look at the popular > anti-austerity excitement surrounding the Greek elections, but that he > had to take into account the wishes of people in other countries, > including Finns and Germans who were not inclined to give Greece a penny > more. “We don’t change our policy according to elections,” he said. > > Mr. Katainen’s remarks suggested Brussels’s opening bargaining position, > and they did not necessarily mean that European officials would not > offer concessions. But they put the heat on Athens, especially since > there is not much time to reach a deal: Greece’s current European > bailout, already extended, ends in late February unless there is another > extension. > > “We need to start working together very soon because the commitments > have not changed and time is running out,” Mr. Katainen told reporters. > > Asked whether Greece would be able to persuade creditors to write off > some of its debt, Mr. Katianen said he thought this this was a > nonstarter, at least in the Eurogroup, a grouping of finance ministers > from the 19 countries, including Greece, that use the euro. > > “It would be difficult to see that there would be a majority in the > Eurogroup supporting a haircut in Greek debt,” said Mr. Katainen, a > former prime minister of Finland, which has strongly supported Germany > in demanding that Athens pay its bills. > > In the cabinet meeting on Wednesday, Mr. Tsipras set out his > government’s top priorities in order: tackling what he called the > country’s humanitarian crisis; stimulating the economy so it could start > growing sustainably; entering into a new negotiation with creditors > aimed at finding a “mutually beneficial solution to the debt”; creating > a “fairer” tax system; and confronting vested interests and corruption > “that no one has had the guts to go against.” > > He also vowed to end what he called a regime of cronyism, in which past > governments would “negotiate with the rich, but not to the benefit of > the poor.” > > Mr. Varoufakis said he would reduce costs at the Finance Ministry by > having fewer advisers. He also pledged to rehire about 600 cleaning > employees who were replaced last year by a private firm that the > previous government claimed cost less. > > Mr. Tsipras, whose left-wing Syriza party formed a coalition on Monday, > a day after elections, told his cabinet on Wednesday, “Our aim is to > show solidarity towards the weakest and to restore dignity to society.” > He noted that his government wanted to “allow the small business that is > drowning in debt and facing bankruptcy to get back on its feet while > also relieving citizens hit by unemployment.” > > Mr. Tspiras and Mr. Varoufakis plan to meet with Jeroen Dijsselbloem, > president of the Eurogroup of European Union finance ministers, in > Athens on Friday. This week, Mr. Dijsselbloem warned that there was > “very little support for a write-off” of Greece’s debts. Martin Schulz, > the president of the European Parliament, is also scheduled to visit Mr. > Tsipras this week in Athens. > > The market gyrations, driven by investors bailing out of Greek assets, > reflect fears over the coming showdown over Europe’s austerity ideology. > Were Greece to exit the eurozone and reintroduce the drachma – something > Mr. Tsipras says he has no intention of bringing about – many of the > Greek investments held by foreigners would plunge in value when the new > currency was introduced at a sharp discount to the euro. > > Also, by rocking the boat, the new government has turned an > uncomfortable spotlight on the Greek financial sector’s dependence on > the European Central Bank for exceptional funding support. Just two > weeks ago, the Greek authorities asked the central bank for emergency > liquidity assistance as a precaution for Greece’s four main lenders, > after Eurobank and Alpha Bank, the country’s third- and fourth-largest > banks, requested access to the emergency liquidity line amid reports of > an estimated €3 billion of capital flight in the previous two months. > > Speculation is rife that capital flight has increased significantly > since then. Greek officials said they did not immediately have new > figures, and declined to comment on whether those emergency funds had > been tapped. > > William Lelieveldt, a central bank spokesman, said only that “we don’t > provide real-time information on which kind of liquidity is requested or > drawn.” > > Still, the sell-off, while drastic, was not far out of line with the > kind of volatility that has characterized the Athens financial markets > since the onset of the country’s crisis in 2010. Indeed, investors now > tend to treat Greece more like a developing country than a member of the > developed world. That volatility could die down as quickly as it arose > should a suitable solution be found. > > The most likely outcome, according to Holger Schmieding, chief economist > at Berenberg Bank in London, is that “facing reality, Prime Minister > Tsipras will eventually get real.” > > “A patient Europe will offer face-saving compromises,” he said. > > Still, Mr. Schmieding said in a research note, that in the meantime > there could “be a rough ride for Greece.” And he warned that the odds of > an “accidental” Greek exit from the eurozone, at 35 percent, were not > insignificant. > > Adding to the uncertainty was a report that Mr. Tsipras had basically > frozen Greece’s privatization program, which had been a central demand > of creditors in approving the country’s international bailouts. The > troika had expected Greece to raise tens of billions of euros to pay its > debts by privatizing state assets. > > But the country’s new energy minister, Panagiotis Lafazanis, told Greek > television that the government was immediately halting plans to > privatize a public power company. It was also delaying the sale of a > portion of Piraeus Port, one of the most strategically placed in the > Mediterranean, to the Chinese state-owned company Cosco, which already > owns half of Piraeus and had recently signed an agreement to start > expanding cargo capacity on the other half of the port. > > Mr. Tsipras said he was well aware of the high expectations for him in > Greece, and the heavy responsibility his government shouldered. He > suggested that the rousing messages of support he had received from > leaders in numerous countries, from Russia to France to Spain, signaled > that compromise was possible. > > “The country is lifting up its head, assuming global significance, > attracting international interest,” he added. “Greece is regaining its > self-confidence and building alliances that will allow it to set its own > agenda at the European table.” > > “We have no time to delay,” he added. “There is no room for mistakes.” > _______________________________________________ > pen-l mailing list > [email protected] > https://lists.csuchico.edu/mailman/listinfo/pen-l > -- Facebook: Gar Lipow Twitter: GarLipow Solving the Climate Crisis web page: SolvingTheClimateCrisis.com Grist Blog: http://grist.org/author/gar-lipow/ Online technical reference: http://www.nohairshirts.com
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