Greece’s inclusion in ECB’s new stimulus credited to PM, gov’t sources say

Greece’s inclusion in an emergency assets purchases’ program launched by the European Central Bank (ECB) to tackle the economic effects of the new coronavirus “is not a coincidence” and is credited to Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis' intervention, government sources said Thursday morning, after the ECB announced the news.

“It is a huge personal success for Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis, as it came after a telephone conversation he had with the ECB chief Christine Lagarde yesterday morning,” his office said in a press release.

Greece’s inclusion in the new bond purchases worth 750 billion euros, the first since the country was shut out of previous ECB buys because of its low credit rating, will lower its borrowing costs and provide liquidity to the real economy, it added.

Earlier on Thursday, Greek Finance Minister Christos Staikouras, said about 12 billion euros in Greek government debt is eligible for inclusion in the asset purchases’ program.

The prime minister’s office said this is an achievement that eluded former premier Alexis Tsipras.