FRANKFURT (MNI) – Something along the lines of the Vienna
Initiative would be sensible in the case of Greece, although one would
have to take into account the particularities of the Greek situation,
European Central Bank Governing Council member Ewald Nowotny said
Tuesday.
Speaking at a press conference on the IMF Article 4 Consultation
with Austria, whose central bank Nowotny heads, he said that as “a
general note on the need for coordination” regarding Greece, “a Vienna-
Initiative type of action makes a lot of sense but what we have had as
the actual Vienna Initiative was in many aspects very different to the
situation we have now because it was about loan giving.”
“In the case of Greece it is about bonds,” he said, “where a lot of
uncertainty comes from the fact that rating agencies are involved and
more financial players.”
He continued: “During the Vienna Initiative we were able to have a
direct dialogue with a limited number of banks, so it was much more
feasible to have results in a relatively fast approach.”
Nevertheless, he added, “that does not say that the general
principle should not apply. Something like a Vienna Initiative-type
action would make sense, but one has to see the differences between the
initial Vienna Initiative and the current situation.”
–Frankfurt bureau tel.: +49-69-720142. Email: frankfurt@marketnews.com
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