Germany Against Haircut on Greek Debt Held By Public Sector

BERLIN (MNI) – The German government on Monday reaffirmed its
categorical opposition to any haircut on Greek debt held by the public
sector.

German weekly Der Spiegel reported over the weekend that the troika
of the European Commission, the European Central Bank and the
International Monetary Fund had called for a new haircut on Greek bonds
which would also force public creditors to write-off Greek debt.

“For the federal government a public debt haircut is out of the
question,” spokesman Steffen Seibert said at a regular press conference
here.

Under German budget rules such a haircut would forbid the
government to give any new loans to Greece or sign guarantees for loans
given to the country, Seibert said. “This would surely not be in the
interest of Greece,” he argued.

German Finance Ministry spokeswoman Marianne Kothe said at the same
press conference that it was still unclear if Eurozone Finance Ministers
would already be able to decide at their next Eurogroup meeting on
November 12 about further aid for Greece. There still does not exist any
written report about the latest troika mission to Greece, she said.

–Berlin bureau: +49-30-22 62 05 80; email: twidder@mni-news.com

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