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February 18th, 2012 
FAKE NEWS for the Zionist agenda
“The idea instead is that the Greek government should officially declare
itself bankrupt and begin negotiating an even bigger cut with its creditors.
For Schäuble, it is more a question of when, not if.”
The German finance minister’s comments are certain to plunge the authorities
in Athens into even deeper gloom. On Saturday they tried to sound
optimistic, with a cabinet meeting to thrash out the final details of an
austerity package.
The cuts, including a reduction in the minimum wage, mass redundancies within
the public sector, and a slashing of the health and defence budgets, sparked
rage on the streets of Athens last week, with buildings set on fire amid
angry protests.
But the country’s politicians are resolutely trying to sound upbeat. “The
Greek people have done everything they can and we are determined to make
good on our commitments,” said Christos Papoutsis, public order
minister.
The French prime minister, Francois Fillon, lent his support to the embattled
Greeks when he cautioned last week that Europe should not “play with
the default of Greece” and must now play its part.
“The Greeks have promised very important reforms,” he told RTL
radio. “The Europeans now have to keep their commitments.”
With Greek morale at rock bottom, the national mood darkened yet further after
armed thieves looted a museum on Friday in Olympia, birthplace of the
Olympic Games, and stole bronze and pottery artefacts – just weeks after the
country’s National Gallery was burgled.
One Greek newspaper suggested the state could no longer properly look after
the nation’s immense cultural heritage. “The Greek state has gone
bankrupt, let’s face it,” the conservative daily Kathimerini said in an
editorial.
“If the state cannot guard the country’s great cultural heritage for
financial or other reasons it must find other ways to do it.”
Mr Schäuble’s pessimism will not be welcomed in Athens. The hugely influential
German politician’s doubts have been growing for several weeks, and prompted
angry exchanges when Greece accused Germany of trying to drive it out of the
euro.
His scepticism is not yet fully shared by Angela Merkel, who is said still to
be determined to prevent Greece’s financial collapse. “She thinks
Greece going bust could cause a shock wave that buries other countries –
with Spain and Italy among them. It could break apart the entire monetary
union,” said an official.
But it has support from Austria and Finland – holding the prospect that a
eurozone meeting tomorrow will fail to agree the next set of EU-IMF payments
for Greece.
Greece must service €14.5 billion of debt on March 20 and, before EU-IMF cash
can flow into its accounts, persuade private creditors of the country,
mainly banks, insurance companies and funds, to give up on 70 per cent of
their claims.
“The private sector involvement takes at least four weeks to issue the
prospectus and to get subscribers, and without a deal on Monday then time
will run out in March,” said an EU diplomat.
Rumours are already circulating in Wall Street that banks are preparing for a “credit
event” – a technical term used by credit agencies to mean a default –
in the days immediately following March 20, as Greece looks likely to be
unable to meet its debts.
The sense that an endgame is approaching has been fuelled by the secret “troika”
report, by EU, IMF and ECB officials on Greek debt “sustainability”.
It found that even if Greece implemented all the austerity measures expected
of it, and if it achieves highly optimistic economic growth targets, it will
still fall short of what is needed, with debt likely to total 129 per cent
of GDP in 2020.
But the European Central Bank and the Eucopean Commission are, for now, lining
up with Mrs Merkel to push for the rescue attempt to continue, fearful that
the financial tsunami that would be unleashed if it failed would swamp the
eurozone.
Mr Schäuble maintains that since Greece is already regarded by the financial
world as bankrupt, a formal bankruptcy would have no negative consequences
for other euro members.
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