Greek Coalition Talks End Without Any New Leader Named

Chaos and confusion reigns supreme in Athens as Greek political bosses have again failed to name a new interim leader as talks between outgoing Prime Minister George Papandreou and opposition chief Antonis Samaras have apparently bogged down.

Negotiations have now been postponed until Thursday, according to reports.

Papandreou and Samaras had been in talks with President Karolos Papoulias on forming a new coalition government

The Associated Press reported that Giorgos Karatzaferis, the boss of a small right-wing party, angrily walked out of the talks, accusing Papandreou and Samaras of resorting to trickery.”

The talks have now dragged on for three fruitless days, amidst urgency for Greece to accept the latest Eurozone bailout package and impose drastic austerity measures.

Papandreou had given his farewell address earlier, but he'd also said that he and his fellow negotiators had chosen a new as-yet-unnamed interim prime minister. The latest development would seem to contradict such reports and only adds more concern surrounding the debt crisis that threatens to sink Greece and spread across the Eurozone.

Moreover, earlier reports claimed that Papandreou had spoken by phone with French President Nicolas Sarkozy, assuring him that a new coalition government was put in place.

Earlier reports suggested the front-runner for the Prime Minister position was Philippos Petsalnikos, the speaker of the Greek parliament and former justice minister. Petsalnikos has been in government since 1985, when he was elected as a Socialist MP and has led the parliament since 2009.

Other reports suggest the front-runner for the top job is former European Central Bank vice president Lucas Papademos.

European and Greek media have speculated on a number of possible candidates to lead the next government, including Nikiforos Diamandouros, Greece's European ombudsman; Panagiotis Roumeliotis, Greece's representative to the International Monetary Fund (IMF); Ioannis Koukiadis, a law professor and former labor minister under Papandreou’s Socialist Pasok party.