Greece hopeful of deal despite German doubts
GREECE is entering another week of uncertainty after failing to reach an agreement with the Eurogroup over debt repayments.
Eurozone finance ministers will meet today, but have already ruled out achieving a deal to unlock aid for Greece at the meeting citing too many unresolved issues.
Greece and the rest of the Eurogroup have been in talks for months in an attempt to reach a cash-for-reform deal that could release more than €7bn (£5bn) to Athens.
Tomorrow is the deadline for a €770m repayment to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). While it was previously assumed that the Greek government would fail to meet this target, Athens found €200m for a separate IMF payment last week, and finance minister Yanis Varoufakis said the country could avoid default this week.
Meanwhile, German chancellor Angela Merkel is facing pressure from members of her own party over her stance on Greece. Ministers are pushing for the German leader to withdraw her support for keeping Greece in the Eurozone. However, Greek officials remain optimistic that a deal is still within reach.