Fra Guardian live update
A German finance ministry spokesman said the German negotiating team is heading to Brussels on Saturday with the goal of reaching a deal – and the ultimate goal is to keep Greece in the euro. But debt relief is not part of the discussions, according to Reuters.
A German government spokeswoman said Merkel made clear that time is pressing on Greece. A deal must be struck by creditors and eurozone finance ministers, rejecting Greek calls for a leaders’ summit.
Over in Athens, talks between Tsipras, Merkel and Hollande have been concluded but may well continue again once the EU summit is over, Greek news outlets are reporting. Our correspondent Helena Smith reports: a government statement, issued within minutes of the three-way meeting being held in the offices of the French delegation at the European Council, said:
Alexis Tsipras informed the two leaders about the Greek proposal and emphasised that the Greek side did not understand why creditors were insisting on such hard measures. Negotiations will continue after the summit is concluded.
The talks – the third of their kind in less than a month – were arranged late last night after Athens submitted another revised package of proposed reforms running eight pages long.
Sticking points between the two remain pensions (Athens wants to raise the pension age to 67 in 2022 and not earlier) and value added tax, insiders say. The Greek government is adamant that VAT should not be increased on islands which have long been exempt from higher levies under EU treaty.
Here’s more on those private talks between Tsipras, Merkel and Hollande this morning, which lasted 45 minutes, courtesy of Reuters. A French source told the news agency:
On the substance, the gap is not so wide. They discussed what has to be done today and tomorrow to conclude on issues still to be settled relating to reforms, the extension of the programme and the question of financing.
Both Merkel and Hollande stressed that Saturday’s Eurogroup meeting was the decisive moment in the negotiations and saw no need for another eurozone leaders’ summit. If necessary, they will hold further talks with Tsipras before the finance ministers’ meeting.
While we are waiting, a German finance ministry spokesman just said the Greek government needs to “move” in Saturday’s negotiations. It is up to Greece to accept the “very generous” offer from the creditors.
Donald Tusk, president of the European Council, and Jean-Claude Juncker, president of the European Commission will be holding a press conference soon. You can watch it live here.
Tsipras, Merkel and Hollande discussed the possibility of extending Greece’s bailout programme, according to Reuters, citing a French source. They had a private meeting before the final session of the EU leaders’ summit in Brussels.
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And eurozone finance ministers are due to resume discussions on Saturday at 5pm Brussels time.
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Tsipras: can’t understand lenders’ insistence on tough measures
Headlines flashing on Reuters:
The Greek prime minister Alexis Tsipras he told the German and French leaders that Greece could not understand the lenders’ insistence on tough measures. Talks will continue after the EU leaders’ summit ends around midday on Friday.
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ECB keeps cash lifeline for Greece unchanged for third day – Reuters
Reuters is reporting, citing a source, that the European Central Bank’s governing council decided on Friday to keep its emergency liquidity assistance for Greek banks – a crucial cash lifeline for the country – unchanged at €89bn for a third day. The ECB previously increased the programme steadily over many weeks. Click here for more context.
