Last ditch talks to avoid a Greek debt default fail

Talks between Greece and its international creditors ended in failure on Sunday leaving the fate of the cash-strapped country in the hands of eurozone finance ministers when they meet on Thursday.

With no deal reached, a political decision will have to be made over its membership of the EU currency bloc.

European Union officials have blamed the collapse of the talks on the Greek negotiating team saying they had failed to offer anything new to secure the funding it needs to repay 1.6 billion euros to the International Monetary fund by the end of this month.

The main sticking point has been over pensions .
The IMF is demanding a cut of 1% of GDP per year – but Athens has refused. Its counter proposals were described by EU Commission representatives as “ incomplete”.

The shadow of a Greek exit from the eurozone now looms large and if it happens it will come as a historic blow to the EU’s most ambitious project.

Greece and creditors fail in ‘last attempt’ to reach deal http://