Maximos Mansion reacts to Schaeuble IMF comments

Continuing Greece’s program without the International Monetary Fund (IMF) or without funding from the Washington-based institution could help break the deadlock caused by disagreements between the institutions, sources from Maximos Mansion said Friday.

According to the same sources, the idea that the Greek program can be adequately supervised by European institutions alone is “welcome, as long as related initiatives and decisions are made in a swift manner.”

On Thursday, German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said that the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) could supervise Greece’s bailout program in the event that the IMF decided to withdraw.

“If the Fund for some reason decides not to participate, the Europeans… will have to impose what was agreed on, obviously more effectively,” Schaeuble told Suddeutsche Zeitung.

The German minister said that, in this event, European lenders would have to “significantly improve” the conditions agreed in a new aid program, including giving the ESM the duty of overseeing the implementation of the Greek prorgram.

He added that this would have to be approved by the German Bundestag.