The Germans are pulling our leg

In a joint press conference with PM George Papandreou, German Chancellor Angela Merkel reiterated the belief that both her country and other European partners want a strong Greece and will do whatever is necessary to support our country.

Particular mention should be made to the aversion in the German Chancellor’s statements, which linked the continuation of support for our country to the Troika "verdict" regarding the commitments of the Greek government and the progress of reforms.

These are commitments that our country will fulfill, as assured by the PM, who once again spoke of attempts to achieve primary surpluses in 2012 and of radical changes in the structure of the Greek economy.

Among other things, Merkel said that there should be a common approach to the economic policy of the Eurozone, something that must be understood by the countries with problems that are now subjected to sacrifices.

Papandreou mentioned these sacrifices as well, adding that this is a crucial turning point and our European partners must show their support towards Greece.

The only certainty is that during the dinner following, the climate will be different from that of the relaxed and positive brief statements of the two leaders in front of the cameras. Information says they will even discuss scenarios that are publicly discarded, possibly such as that of selective default.

Wolfgang Schäuble’s statement, which followed those by the two leaders, that even solidarity between Europeans has its limits, was a trigger factor for those scenarios…