Samaras to Meet Troika

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Following tough negotiations between the Troika heads and technical teams with several key ministers and high-ranking officials on the ministries, Prime Minister Antonis Samaras is scheduled to meet with the heads of the EC, the ECB and the IMF (or Troika) on Tuesday afternoon at the Maximos Mansion (government headquarters). The Greek premier has made it clear that no additional austerity measures will be taken, and underlined the need for a gradual reduction of corporate tax in a bid to boost entrepreneurship, with a view to a single tax rate (flat rate) of 15 percent on businesses.

The outstanding issues with the Troika were the focus of discussions on Monday afternoon at a broad inter-ministerial meeting at the Finance Ministry comprising Finance Minister Yannis Stournaras, alternate finance minister Christos Staikouras, Interior Minister Evripides Stylianidis and Labor Minister Yannis Vroutsis as well as the ministries' senior staff, who were joined by the Troika.

Samaras is tentatively scheduled to confer with Stournaras on Tuesday morning, ahead of the premier's meeting with the troika.

According to sources, agreement has been reached on the issue of arranging payment of debts to the social security funds as well as private debts to banks in installments, and on the civil servants' mobility in the public sector, while deliberations were continuing on an arrangement for payment of debts to the state and the reform of the tax-collection mechanism. (AMNA)