Eurogroup finance ministers signalled their approval in a telephone conference on Tuesday afternoon. According to the European Commission the ministers approved in principle an extension of the assistance programme until the end of June. Prior to this, Athens had submitted a list of proposed reforms.

Last Friday the Eurogroup and the Greek government considered a four-month extension of the programme, provided Greece meets a number of reform pledges. The extension thus depends on the "quality" of Greece’s reform pledges reported the Federal Finance Ministry on Monday.

"The aim of the extension is to bring the programme to a successful conclusion," said Federal Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble after the Eurogroup’s meeting on Greece last Friday. A special meeting of the finance ministers was held in Brussels.

The German Bundestag must approve Greece’s request for an extension of the ongoing programme.

Keeping Greece in the euro zone

Athens originally applied for a six-month extension of the assistance programme. Before the special meeting of the Eurogroup last Friday, Federal Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble stressed, "This is not about any one country. It is about finding solutions that do not destroy confidence in the continuation and reliability of this European unification process."

Chancellor Angela Merkel also stated, "Substantial improvements will have to be made to the application if it is to be approved by the German Bundestag." The details will be hammered out by the Eurogroup finance ministers, she said following talks with President François Hollande in Paris on Friday. The meeting should mark the start of an intensive phase of work, said the Chancellor. The goal is for Greece to remain part of the euro zone.

The ongoing assistance programme for Greece will expire at the end of February. An application from the Greek government was initially submitted last Thursday to representatives of the European Commission, the European Central Bank (ECB) and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) for review.

In an initial statement the Federal Finance Ministry rejected this application, which contained "no substantial proposal to resolve the crisis". Neither did it comply with the criteria for any extension of the programme, explained Federal Finance Ministry spokesperson, Martin Jäger. This is why a special meeting of the Eurogroup was convened.

Clear conditions attached to an extension of the programme

After the meeting of the Eurogroup last Monday (16 February) Eurogroup President Jeroen Dijsselbloem listed five conditions for an extension of the assistance programme:

• There can be no departure from agreed measures without the approval of the Eurogroup.
• New measures must be implemented such that they are budget-neutral.
• All debts owed to all creditors must be recognised.
• Greece must commit to meet the terms of the agreed programme.

• Greece must commit to cooperating closely with the European Commission, the ECB and the IMF.
  

Greece’s debts to EU partner states and institutions total about 220 billion euros.

• Of this sum, 52.9 billion euros was provided in the form of loans by other member states. Germany put up 15.2 billion euros of this.
• The European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) has provided Greece with 141.9 billion euros. To this sum must be added 1.8 billion euros in deferred interest.
• Greece also owes the International Monetary Fund (IMF) some 22.8 billion euros.