Greek Politics
Falling bank shares prompt coalition to take closer look
Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras chaired a hastily-arranged meeting of top government officials on Wednesday after a sharp decline in bank shares on the Athens Stock Exchange led to Greek lenders and their difficulties coming under scrutiny.
Coalition hopeful on pensions, looks to maximise impact of limited relief measures
The Greek government is becoming increasingly optimistic that it can avoid next year’s pension cuts and is starting to focus on how it can maximise the positive political impact of the pared down compensatory fiscal measures it will be able to implement if European lenders agreed to Athens’s request to scrap the reduction to spending on retirees.
Equivocal Macedonia name referendum leaves Athens hanging on as views differ
The low turnout in the referendum held by the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) on the agreement with Greece to rename the Balkan country North Macedonia has triggered doubts regarding how events will unfold in the coming weeks
Tsipras ready to stay course on Macedonia name deal despite domestic uncertainty
Ahead of the referendum this weekend in the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) on the name deal with Greece, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has insisted that he has no plans of jeopardising the ratification of the so-called Prespes Agreement by calling snap elections before Greek Parliament has had its say.
ANEL leader under scrutiny due to party unrest, questions over refugee funds
Defence Minister Panos Kammenos finds himself under scrutiny this week due to unrest within his Independent Greeks (ANEL) party and the revelation that European anti-corruption authorities are investigating the use of funds allocated for the refugee crisis.
Lenders set to keep coalition waiting for answer on pension cuts
The Greek government is likely to have to wait until the December 3 Eurogroup until it finds out whether its request for next year’s pension cuts to be shelved will be accepted by the country’s lenders.
Tsipras and Kammenos vow to stick together until further notice
Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras left for New York on Sunday to attend the United Nations General Assembly, but not before publicly making up with his coalition partner Independent Greeks (ANEL) leader and Defence Minister Panos Kammenos following apparent tension between SYRIZA and its governing ally over the Macedonia name issue.
PM moves quickly on policy pledges in bid highlight benefits of MoU exit
The government is moving ahead with efforts to legislate, and in some cases pre-legislate, the measures announced by Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras at the Thessaloniki Expo (DETH) recently as it attempts to convince voters that they were not just empty pledges.
Divisions emerge within ANEL over vote on Macedonia name deal
The insistence by Defence Minister Panos Kammenos, who leads junior coalition partner Independent Greeks (ANEL), that he will bring down the government if the Macedonia name agreement comes to Greek Parliament has met with opposition from some of his own MPs.
ND defends economic pledges as Kammenos repeats walkout threat
The fallout from the economic pledges made by New Democracy leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis at the Thessaloniki Expo (DETH) over the weekend have dominated the political discussion at the start of this week, but observers also have one eye on the turmoil that could be caused by the Macedonia name issue.