BackNov 03 | Euro zone crisis: as it happens
Nov 03 | Euro zone crisis: as it happens
PremiumFrance President Nicolas Sarkozy with US President Barack Obama. (Reuters photo)
1325: Europe should not fear a change of government in Greece, Michael Noonan, Ireland’s finance minister said in Dublin.
1316: According to Spanish officials, the main focus of EU discussion was strengthening firewall to protect the euro zone.
1309: Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou has not offered his resignation, a source at his office said.
1305: A group of about 30 opposition and ruling party lawmakers signed a letter demanding a new “national unity government", and early elections held.
1245: ECB cuts interest rates by 25 basis points to 1.25%.
1212: Antonis Samaras, head of Greece’s conservative opposition New Democracy party, calls for a caretaker government to lead the country until snap election is held. The present parliament should ratify the bailout package, he says.
1207: White House says Greek situation underscores need to move rapidly to implement euro zone debt package.
1154: Greek prime minister George Papandreou will visit President Karolos Papoulias after an emergency cabinet meeting, state television reports.
1143: G-20 is assessing the cost of a Greek default and the implications of Greece’s possible exit from the euro zone, a senior G-20 official says .
1140: EU Commission says the place of Greece is within the euro zone and there are instruments in place to ensure that, adding it considers this is the only option on the table.
1128: Russia’s president Dmitry Medvedev says responsibility for solving the euro zone crisis lies with national governments. Medvedev says Russia would still participate in IMF programmes to support the euro zone
1116: Greek prime minister George Papandreou has not resigned and does not intend to, a Greek newspaper quoted his chief of staff as saying.
1115: A small group of senior Greek ruling party lawmakers prepare a proposal for a coalition government headed by former European Central Bank vice president Lucas Papademos, sources in prime minister George Papandreou’s party told Reuters.
1055: China’s Hu Jintao said euro zone needs to rely on itself to solve debt crisis, world must support and help.
1041: A government source said that Greece has enough cash to make it until mid-December as fears grew about when the country would get its next tranche of aid from foreign lenders.
1031: Socialist lawmaker Telemachos Hitiris urged Papandreou to form a coalition government and later call early elections. He said elections should be held only after a €130 billion bailout for Greece had been approved and the latest euro tranche had been secured.
0945: China’s Hu says BRICS discussed Euro zone crisis.
0942: US President Barack Obama says that he agrees with French president Nicolas Sarkozy that EU has made some important steps to wards a comprehensive solution to the debt crisis.
0858: Greek ruling party lawmaker Dimitris Lintzeris called on prime minister George Papandreou to resign on Thursday, becoming the latest lawmaker to pile pressure on the embattled leader.
0844: PASOK lawmaker Eva Kaili said she would not support the Greek government in a parliamentary vote of confidence.
0839: Greek prime minister George Papandreou called an emergency cabinet meeting at 1000 GMT on Thursday.
0837: Greece’s PASOK ruling party parliamentary group will meet later, state radio NET said, without providing further details. More dissident lawmakers in the ruling PASOK party spoke out against a referendum and called for a national unity government or early elections, casting doubt on whether Prime Minister Papandreou can win a confidence vote on Friday.
0830: Ruling party lawmaker Elena Panariti told local radio that she would not back the referendum proposed by Papandreou.
0808: Ruling party lawmaker Vasso Papandreou, not related to the prime minister, reiterated her call for snap elections and a national unity government.
0722: A finance ministry source told Reuters that Greek finance minister Evangelos Venizelos opposes holding a referendum on the country’s euro zone bailout package.
0655: Ruling party lawmaker, Mimis Androulakis, told Antenna TV that Papandreou should withdraw his plan for a referendum on a euro rescue package.
0648: Greece’s planned referendum should not be about membership of the euro, Deputy Finance Minister Pantelis Oikonomou said on NET TV, rejecting what he called an ultimatum after the leaders of Germany and France said Athens would not receive another cent in European aid until it decides whether it wants to stay in the euro zone.
(All times are GMT)
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