Juncker: limited room for maneuver to relieve Greek debt

PanARMENIAN.Net - European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker signaled on Tuesday, Feb 3, that there is limited room for maneuver to accommodate the demands of the new Greek government as he prepares to meet with Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, the Wall Street Journal reports.

Tsipras is due in Brussels on Wednesday morning to meet Juncker among others. It is the Greek leader’s first trip to Brussels since taking office last week. He is also visiting Rome and Paris this week as he seeks to drum up support for his government’s push for greater leniency on its debt repayments.

“I have already said to him twice on the telephone that we have to take account of the democratic expression of the Greek people,” Juncker told lawmakers in the European Parliament, referring to the Greek leader. “But I think those who won the elections will also have to take account of the way in which others do things and the convictions of others.”

“So yes, we are going to have to do a certain amount, but we aren't going to change everything because of one electoral result that some people like and some people don’t like,” he said.

Juncker said the EU executive hasn't always got right the balance between fiscal consolidation, growth and job creation. However, he said those suggesting there were no real constraints on the bloc’s budgetary position weren't credible, according to the Journal.

“What we have done over recent years hasn’t necessarily always taken account of growth…So I do think we have to correct the errors we have made in the past,” Juncker said. “What I don’t think we should do is simply replace what we have already had with its exact opposite. That will basically send us to the wall.”