Germany prepared for Greek exit from Eurozone: reportJanuary 4, 2015 - 20:11 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - The German government is prepared to countenance a Greek exit from the eurozone, should it prove necessary, says a report from German news magazine Der Spiegel, according to Deutsche Welle. The magazine reported in its online edition on Saturday, Jan 4, that Chancellor Angela Merkel and Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble believe that such a development would now prove bearable for the rest of the currency bloc. The report cited progress made in the eurozone since 2012, when the eurozone sovereign debt crisis was said to have been at its worst, with fears diminishing that a "Grexit" could cause the currency union to disintegrate. "The danger of contagion is limited because Portugal and Ireland are considered rehabilitated," Der Spiegel quoted a government source as saying. In addition, the European Stability Mechanism (ESM), the eurozone's bailout fund, was now seen as an effective and available rescue mechanism. Major banks would be protected by the banking union. Any such policy shift has yet to be confirmed by the German government, with Berlin previously having been keen to keep Greece within the bloc. European shares and certain eurozone bonds fell in value last week after the Greek parliament rejected Prime Minister Antonis Samaras' presidential candidate. That set a course for the country to stage a general election which could see the opposition party Syriza achieve victory, as polls predict. The election is set to take place on Jan 25. Syriza's leader Alexis Tsipras has vowed to reverse the reforms insisted upon by Greece's international creditors, which include the EU and International Monetary Fund. A poll published on Saturday showed that Syriza led the ruling Samaras' conservative New Democracy with 30.4 percent of the vote compared with 27.3 percent. The socialist PASOK party, the junior member of a coalition with new Democracy, polled just 3.5 percent of the vote. Former Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou officially formed his new party Saturday, further complicating the pre-election battleground. Papandreou, who was PASOK's premier from 2009 to 2011, said the new Movement of Democrat Socialists would work after the election "to definitively bring Greece out of the crisis." Top stories Authorities said a total of 192 Azerbaijani troops were killed and 511 were wounded during Azerbaijan’s offensive. In 2023, the Azerbaijani government will increase the country’s defense budget by more than 1.1 billion manats ($650 million). The bill, published on Monday, is designed to "eliminate the shortcomings of an unreasonably broad interpretation of the key concept of "compatriot". The earthquake caused a temporary blackout, damaged many buildings and closed a number of rural roads. Partner news | Scholz hopes Armenia-Azerbaijan peace treaty will be signed this year German Chancellor Olaf Scholz hopes that a peace treaty between Armenia and Azerbaijan will be signed this year. Ucom equips four bus stops in Ijevan with free Wi-Fi Ucom now provides free Wi-Fi coverage in smart bus stops in four communities of Ijevan. Armenia, Russia discuss life extension of Metsamor nuclear plant Issues regarding the extension of life of the 2nd power unit of the Armenian Nuclear Power Plant were discussed in Yerevan. Armenians stage more campaigns against territorial concessions to Azerbaijan Protesters blocked more roads across Armenia on Friday, April 26 in continuing attempts to scuttle territorial concessions to Azerbaijan. |