Schaeuble tells MPs Varoufakis ‘strains’ EU solidarity

Germany’s Wolfgang Schaeuble told a meeting of conservatives lawmakers on Thursday that recent remarks by the Greek finance minister had strained European solidarity and that a bailout extension for Athens could be ditched if the country failed to stick to its promises, according to participants.

The German finance minister met lawmakers from Chancellor Angela Merkel’s conservative bloc to prepare for Friday’s vote in the Bundestag on extending the Greek bailout in return for a new package of reform commitments by the new leftist-led government of Alexis Tsipras.

Lawmakers speaking on condition of anonymity said Schaeuble said Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis “strains the solidarity of European partners” in interviews where he has resurrected talk of a debt haircut for Greece and cast doubt on its ability to repay its international debts.

[Reuters]