Greek Bailout Deal almost Complete for More Than $90B in Financing

“In short, we maintain the view that a third bailout for Greece will not solve its deep-seated economic and fiscal problems or secure its future inside the currency union”, Loynes said.

Tsipras’ former finance minister Yanis Varoufakis concurred.

“There are some small details that still need to be finalized”, Breidthardt added, but said she expected them to be sorted out by the end of Tuesday. Greece’s finance minister will have to try to push this deal through Parliament.

Greece and its lenders have been holding marathon negotiations over the finalization of a list of reforms and austerity measures the government must implement in order to receive another bailout worth Euro 86 billion (USD 93 billion).

Last month, 60 lawmakers in Merkel’s 311-member caucus voted against even holding talks on further aid to Greece, underscoring the risks over Greece.

The Commission said a technical agreement had been reached with Greece, which now requires political approval.

Greek lawmakers are finishing a draft bill for the country’s third government bailout package in five years, aiming for a vote before a meeting of euro zone ministers on Friday, August 14.

A finance ministry source also told AFP: “The details do not affect the main body of the agreement”.

It needs a deal by August 20, when it is due to repay £2.1billion to the European Central Bank.

In Athens, Tsipras asked for the Parliament to be recalled from its summer recess for a vote on Thursday, but Parliament speaker Zoe Konstantopoulou said the planning would not be decided before Wednesday evening.

“An agreement was reached”, a government source said, with Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos telling reporters: “We are very close…” “We must take one step at a time”.

“Deputy German Finance Minster Jens Spahn said today that the deal is about the next three years, not just about next week’s debt repayment, stressing that it needs to be negotiated thoroughly”.

The latest round of talks with inspectors from four creditor institutions-the European Commission, European Central Bank, the European bailout fund and the worldwide Monetary Fund-progressed smoothly, in contrast to the bad-tempered encounters of earlier in the year.

Adapted from an earlier baseline scenario, the targets foresee a primary budget deficit of 0.25 per cent of gross domestic product in 2015, a 0.5 per cent surplus from 2016, 1.75 per cent in 2017, and 3.5 per cent in 2018, the official said. An initial 10 billion euros will be made available “immediately” to shore up confidence in Greek banks, while authorities conduct a detailed asset quality review that is expected to take several months.

Former energy minister Panagiotis Lafazanis, who is opposed to the new bailout agreement, has dismissed it as “a negotiating fiasco” and said Tsipras could not “avoid the outcry by resorting guiltily and hurriedly to elections”.