Europe Demands Tighter Control for Greek Bailout Plan, Delays Package Approval

The eurozone finance ministers have demanded greater supervision and control of Greece's economy in return for the approval of bailout package.

Jean-Claude Juncker, head of the Eurogroup, praised the progress Greece had made but added that more work was needed to strengthen oversight of how Greece would implement its austerity plans.

On the basis of the elements that are currently on the table and the above-mentioned additional input, I am confident that the Eurogroup will be able to take all the necessary decisions on Monday 20 February, he said.

The teleconference among eurozone finance ministers failed to resolve all the issues surrounding the 130 billion euros ($170 billion) bailout package for Greece, putting off any decision on the matter until Monday at the earliest.

The EU, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and the European Central Bank (ECB) had been demanding that Greece identify 325m euros of further spending cuts. Also they insisted that the major Greek political parties promise in writing to implement the cuts.

Greece said it has met all the conditions set by the EU and the IMF. Greek Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos said that the cabinet had decided how to plug a 325 million euro gap in the 3.3 billion euros of extra budget savings this year. Also he noted that the leaders of both parties in the government of Prime Minister Lucas Papademos had given written undertakings to implement the austerity measures. Conservative leader Antonis Samaras, the front runner to become the next prime minister, and Socialist leader George Papandreou provided their written undertaking to the EU and IMF.

If New Democracy wins the next election in Greece, we will remain committed to the programme's objectives, targets and key policies, Samaras wrote.

Greece faces a looming deadline in March 20 when it needs to make repayments on a 14.5 billion euro bond, or become the first country in the euro's 13-year history to default. At the same time if Greece defaults, the consequence can be devastating.

In such a scenario, Greece will have to abandon the euro and restore its old currency, the drachma. If Greece exits the eurozone, its banks will go bust, foreign exchange will be scarce and rationed, inflation and unemployment will soar.