Greece needs more time for cuts, says PM Samaras

Prime Minister Antonis Samaras is under pressure to convince the eurozone leaders of Greece's efforts

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Greece's Prime Minister, Antonis Samaras, has called for more time to implement tough spending cuts and reforms, ahead of talks on its bailout.

Mr Samaras told German daily Bild that Greece needed "breathing space".

He will meet Jean-Claude Juncker, the head of the Eurogroup of finance ministers later, and the French and German leaders later this week.

At issue is whether Greece has done enough to receive its next 31.5bn-euro (£24.7bn) bailout payment.

Failure to unlock the funds could lead to Greece defaulting on its vast public debt and possibly leaving the euro.

Mr Samaras is under pressure to show Greece can fulfil its commitment of 11.5bn euros in public spending cuts within two years in order to qualify for the money.

At the talks with Mr Juncker, he is expected to float the idea of Greece being given a two-year extension to the deadline.

'Growth needed'

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Analysis

Mark LowenBBC News, Athens

The discussions will focus on Greece's plans for a further 11.5bn euros of cuts, hoping it will secure the next slice of its bailout money.

Mr Samaras will assure Mr Juncker of Greece's commitment to the reforms, but is also likely to broach the topic of a two-year extension to reduce the country's deficit.

His argument will be that Greece has lost time because of general elections this year and that it is more realistic to adjust more gradually, easing the intense pain felt by the Greek people.

A government source has told the BBC that the prime minister will not press the issue, fearing it might cause bad blood with Greece's international lenders before they deliver their report in September on the country's progress.

For Mr Juncker's part, he is likely to offer public support to Greece's government during this difficult period, though behind closed doors, he will undoubtedly keep up the pressure for Greece to stay the course, however painful.

He will argue that Greece has lost time because of elections this year, and that it should be allowed to move more gradually in order to ease the economic pain felt by the Greek people, the BBC's Mark Lowen reports from Athens.

"Let me be very explicit: we demand no additional money. We stand by our commitments," Mr Samaras told German tabloid Bild in an interview published on Wednesday.

"But we have to kick-start growth in order to cut our deficit. All that we want is a little 'breathing space' to revive the economy quickly and raise state income."

However, a government source told our correspondent that Mr Samaras will not press the issue too hard, fearing it might cause bad blood with the group of lenders that monitors Greece's bailout.

Speaking to the BBC, Yannis Varoufakis, professor of economics at the University of Athens, said Mr Samaras was "profoundly, deeply and sadly wrong. Greece does not need more breathing space. It is not breathing at all."

He said the solution Europe had implemented to tackle Greece's insolvency crisis was a "very silly one" - providing gigantic loans "on condition of austerity measures that would shrink the national income from which that huge loan would have to be repaid", requiring yet more loans and more austerity.

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Crisis jargon buster

Use the dropdown for easy-to-understand explanations of key financial terms:

Troika

Troika

The term used to refer to the European Union, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund - the three organisations charged with monitoring Greece's progress in carrying out austerity measures as a condition of bailout loans provided to it by the IMF and by other European governments. The bailout loans are being released in a number of tranches of cash, each of which must be approved by the troika's inspectors.

Glossary in full

Mr Samaras goes on to meet German Chancellor Angela Merkel on Friday, and French President Francois Hollande on Saturday.

The "troika" - the European Union, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) - is expected to report on Greece's progress next month.

Eurozone leaders have so far resisted any move to soften the bailout conditions.

Especially in Germany, the eurozone's richest country, the government is under pressure not to make any more concessions.

On Monday, German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle insisted Athens must press ahead with the terms already agreed.

The heavily-indebted country has received two massive EU and IMF bailouts - one for 130bn euros this March and one for 100bn euros in May 2010 - to allow it to continue payments on its vast public debt and stay in the eurozone.

Cuts in public spending, benefits, pensions and public sector salaries imposed as a result of both loans have led to severe economic hardship, and Greece remains mired in recession.

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