Germany's Finance Ministry says Greece must fully implement reforms

Despite the ongoing refugee crisis, Greece needs to fully implement the reform and budget consolidation measures agreed with its international lenders, a German finance ministry spokesman said Friday. “Of course Greece needs to fulfill the memorandum,” Martin Jaeger said in Berlin. The spokesman argued that the reform agreements with the lenders allowed for sufficient flexibility.

German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier in an interview with the Greek newspaper Ta New published Thursday urged Greece to stick to the reforms it has agreed with its international lenders. Asked about the possibility of debt relief talks, Steinmeier said that “European partners and especially Germany will continue standing by Greece and respect what has been agreed.” cep chairman Lüder Gerken does not believe that Greece will be able to ever repay its public debt. “A debt haircut is inevitable as is a fourth aid package,” Gerken told German tabloid Bild.