Germany ‘preparing for Greece exit from eurozone’

The pressure has been on Greece all day even after the Greek parliament passed a harsh austerity package that it hopes will lead to a three-year bailout.

European leaders gathered in Brussels Sunday for a crucial Euro Summit to discuss a third bailout for Greece.

Tsipras went into the talks looking for a commitment from creditors to restructure its debt. There’s talk of major unrest within Syriza this evening. Ahead of the referendum, the government had campaigned against the measures.

“We note with concern reports from Brussels that an alternative approach has been proposed by the German Finance Ministry which would involve either the expulsion for the Greek state for a period of years or alternatively the nomination of specific national assets in Greece as security”. He put that firmly on the shoulders of the radical left Syriza government that was elected in January on an anti-austerity prescription. But time will tell.

Greece has received two previous bailouts totaling 240 billion euros ($268 billion) in return for deep spending cuts, tax increases and reforms from successive governments. “Tsipras is realising the catastrophic implications of not getting immediate funding”.

Talks had become so heated that Eurogroup President and Dutch Minister of Finance Jeroen Dijsselbloem made a decision to adjourn at midnight and resume Talks at 11am to allow tempers to cool.

This option, however, was in parentheses in the document submitted to leaders, meaning that it remained open for discussion.

European Council president Donald Tusk confirmed he had cancelled the meeting of all 28 members but said the leaders of the eurozone nations would meet later on Sunday and the meeting would “last until we conclude talks on Greece”. He says the situation in Greece during the past few days has deteriorated in a “tragic” manner. Meanwhile, restrained smiles and exchanges between Merkel and Tsipras at the beginning of the summit.

Tsipras said on arrival in Brussels he wanted “another honest compromise” to keep Europe united.

“The Eurogroup… came to the conclusion that there is not yet the basis to start the negotiations on a new programme”, the draft said.

Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi is also set to stand up to German Chancellor Angela Merkel and warn her that “enough is enough”. Pictures are coming in from the Eurogroup in process.

Arriving at the euro summit Sunday afternoon, she said she would not seek “an agreement at any price” and insisted that trust is now “the most important value [which] is missing”.

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Assuaging those concerns is the task facing Euclid Tsakalotos, who has been Greek finance minister for barely a week, following the resignation of his outspoken predecessor Yanis Varoufakis. He says ministers of different countries, including Malta, are exploring ways of extending the present agreement but could not favour a debt haircut.

“There is “Grexit” or no ‘Grexit.’ Greece is in the Eurozone or out of it”, he said.

Finnish Prime Minister Juha Sipila denied his government had been on the verge of collapse over disagreements on a Greek bailout among coalition members.

“It does now mean that the Greeks have got to demonstrate in their parliament their intent and their seriousness in making the changes and starting to implement in a really serious way what can bring about a functioning Greek economy that will be able to stay in the eurozone“.

“Humiliating a European partner after Greece has given up on just about everything is unthinkable”.