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MARCH ’11


Agreement for the euro, vindication for Greece


IN THIS ISSUE 2


THE KEY ROLE OF GREECE IN LIBYA’S CRISIS MIGRATION STRATEGY PLAN AHEAD IN GREECE


ALEXANDER THE GREAT: ASHMOLEAN MUSEUM PLAN AHEAD IN BRITAIN


SUNNY SUMMER FOR GREECE GREECE@WESTFIELD IN BRIEF


P P P


4 3 HERACLES TO


The “Euro Plus Pact”, es- tablishing an enhanced eco- nomic policy for competi- tiveness and convergence across the eurozone, was formally adopted by the Eu- ropean Council on 24th-25th March in Brussels. The new pact was initially endorsed in an extraordinary meeting of eurozone leaders on 11th March.


The heads of state and gov- ernment of the eurozone member countries also con- firmed their satisfaction with the progress of the fiscal programme implementation in Greece, a programme agreed with the EU and the IMF. In recognition of the Greek government’s and


people’s efforts, an exten- sion was provided for the repayment of the EU/IMF loans. The repayment period was increased from 3 years to 7.5 years. At the same time Greece will have to pay a lower interest rate of 4.2%, instead of 5.2%.


Another significant decision was reached with regards to the European Financial Sta- bility Facility, which will be al- lowed to buy sovereign bonds in the primary market, should a country encounter difficul- ties in tapping the markets.


Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou hailed the de- cisiveness of the European leaders,


stating that Agreement on Libya


The European summits also dealt with the developments in Libya, adopting a declara- tion which expresses grave concern and con- demns “the violent repression the Libyan regime applies against its citizens.”


George Papandreou said that whichever solution is reached in Libya must respect the country’s integrity, emphasising the need for continuous diplomatic efforts to end the stalemate.


“his-


toric” decisions were taken about the future of the eu- rozone. “We made a big step towards addressing the debt crisis, to restore calm to markets, to put the foundations for a more competitive Europe,” said Mr Papandreou after the first eurozone meeting. On the conclusion of the second summit at the end of March, the Greek Prime Minister re- ferred to the trust expressed by the European partners in Greece’s efforts: “these ef- forts were acknowledged by everyone in Europe and were opening up a new prospect for the country’s future,” adding that the strat- egy followed so far has been “vindicated”.


ISSUE 141


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