Eurogroup takes note of progress by Greece

In a statement issued at the end of the extraordinary Eurogroup meeting in Brussels on 1 March 2012, the President of the Eurogroup Jean-Claude Juncker stated that, according to the assessment by the Troika (European Commission, European Central Bank and International Monetary Fund), Greece had made "sufficient progress in completing the agreed prior actions."

Christine Lagarde, Managing Director of the
International Monetary Fund - Jean Claude Juncker,
Luxembourg Prime Minister, President of the Eurogroup
- Wolfgang Schäuble, German Federal Minister for
Finance © European Union, 2012

The required legislation has been adopted and in the next few days the Troika is expected to finalise the assessment of the quality of this transposition.

According to Mr Juncker's statement, ministers gave the green light for the European Financial Stability Facility (EFSF) to activate the Eurosystem collateral enhancement facility. They also agreed on a backstop facility to recapitalise Greek banks in the event of financial stability concerns. In addition, they authorised the EFSF to issue bonds to finance the eurozone's contribution ("sweeteners") to the bond swap operation, known as the private sector involvement (PSI), as well as payment of accrued interest on Greek government bonds.

The Eurogroup "looks forward to a high participation of private creditors in the debt exchange".

More information:
Statement by the President of the Eurogroup, 1 March 2012 (pdf)
Videos (roundtable, doorsteps etc.)
Eurozone governance
Eurogroup webpages
Eurogroup Statement of 20 February 2012 on agreement on a second programme for Greece (pdf)