Greece locked into high-stakes talks with creditors
Cash-strapped Greece has been engaged in a series of high-stakes talks with its EU-IMF creditors the weekend, as the country's politicians battle to unlock much-needed bailout aid and avoid a messy default.
Representatives from Greece's anti-austerity government travelled to Brussels on Friday night, shortly after they submitted a list of reforms to its creditors the Eurozone, the European Central Bank and the IMF.
The package will set forth more wide-ranging economic overhauls than a draft proposal in February, including measures to combat tax evasion as well as public sector reforms.
Athens believes that the list of economic overhauls will boost state revenues by around €3bn (£2.2bn) this year. However, the government has stressed it remains opposed to measures such as further wage or pensions cuts.
It estimates a budget surplus of 1.5 per cent for 2015, which is below the three per cent target included in the country's existing bailout, as well as economic growth of 1.4 per cent.
The government secured a four-month extension to its €240m bailout programme towards the end of February. But it can't access the cash until the reforms are formally approve, with some of them being passed into law.
Reports have suggested Greece risks running out of cash by 20 April unless it manages to secure fresh aid, a source familiar with the matter told Reuters.
Greece also faces a €1.7bn (£1.25bn) bill for wages and pensions at the end of the month and then a €450m loan payment to the IMF on 9 April.
"The liquidity problem is naturally hampering the situation but I believe that will be tackled immediately once we reach an agreement over reforms," Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said in an interview with a Greek newspaper yesterday.