Manos defends Eurogroup deal, attacks coalition parties

Stefanos Manos, a former minister and leader of the small liberal party Drasi, on Thursday backed a deal struck earlier this week between Greece and its eurozone partners in Brussels, but criticized the parties in Greece’s coalition government of having little desire to see it through.

“The people in the government do not seem to want any reforms,” Manos told Skai television early on Thursday, adding that Drasi will participate in the coming elections pencilled in for April.

“All we have is the two parties which are in fact responsible for the current mess and the others which just say ‘no’,” he said. “I do not think that those who led us to the crisis can actually get us out of it.”

Under the Eurogroup agreement, Greece will receive 130 billion euros at a lower interest rate than previously agreed and private sector bondholders will accept a slightly larger haircut than had been expected.

In the interview with Skai, Manos said that Greece must cut its debt to 100 percent of the GDP, instead of the projected 120 percent, by 2020 in order to become sustainable.

Laws to enact the debt swap passed the parliamentary committee stage on Wednesday and are set to be adopted in plenary session on Thursday

Ekathimerini.com