Prime Minister Joseph Muscat said this morning that while the Greek government's decision to hold a referendum on the EU's bailout offer was legitimate and could be anticipated, it's timing so late in the day was irresponsible
Meanwhile, Finance Minister Edward Scicluna described the timing of the Greek government’s decision to hold a referendum on its bailout programme as “a surprise”.
He said the referendum option had been mooted way back when discussions started with the leftist Greek government elected in January but nobody expected the referendum to be held six days after Greece’s repayment deadline.
“Everybody knew when the deadline was so the timing is surprising since during recent negotiations it was always understood the Greek government would seek parliamentary approval for the new deal,” Prof. Scicluna told Times of Malta from Brussels.
A meeting of eurogroup finance ministers is expected to start at 2pm today.
Greece has a June 30 deadline to pay back the International Monetary Fund €1.6 billion, but this will not happen pending the outcome of the referendum result on July 5.
Prof. Scicluna said it will be up to the eurogroup meeting to determine whether Greece would technically be in default or whether it would be handed a one-week extension.
“This is a political decision that we will discuss in the eurogroup meeting. I am in contact with the Prime Minister over the matter.”
Asked whether the latest twist in the months-long saga has angered him, Prof. Scicluna answered: “We have no more energy for anger. It was evident that the Greek government could not continue inside the eurozone with the mandate given to it by the Greek people. It was like trying to square a circle but the timing of the referendum after the IMF deadline is surprising.”
In January the leftist Syriza party, led by the charismatic 40-year-old Alexis Tsipras, was elected to government with a pledge to end austerity and renegotiate terms with Greece’s creditors.
Talks have been deadlocked for five months and no agreement was reached at two emergency meetings this week between Greece, its eurozone partners, the IMF and the European Central Bank.