In an interview with Rai News 24, Eurogroup President Dijsselbloem – who gave another interview to CNN – explains that the Eurogroup discussed the letters received from Alexis Tsipras. Given the political situation in Greece, the rejection of the previous proposals, the referendum, and the advice from the Greek government to vote no, the Eurogroup believes that talks must stop. The Eurogroup, Mr Dijsselbloem says, is awaiting the outcome of the referendum.

“Europe rallies behind Merkel,” a Washington Post headline sums up. With Dijsselbloem voicing that the ministers of finances are not in favour of further talks between the Greek authorities and the EC, the IMF and the ECB, the EU ministers of finance have indeed obviously taken on the German approach (there is no point in further negotiations until after the outcome of the referendum this Sunday) over the French one (pleading for reaching an agreement before the referendum), HFD notes. “Merkel and Hollande put their differences on display,” a Les Echos headline reads.

Mr Tsipras, HFD further comments, has been able to accomplish what Russia has so far failed to do: to create a wedge issue between Germany and France. Although a Stern headline – “Grexit? No, Syrexit!” – is particularly tough towards the Greek government, some other German media are taking a softer line on Greece, partly blaming Ms Merkel’s and Europe’s approach. The euro area is transforming into a “dictatorship of technocrats,” Ulrike Herrmann for instance writes in Die Tageszeitung, adding that it is time for Angela Merkel to be generous, otherwise Europe will fail.

On Spiegel.de, Stefan Kuzmany further criticises Angela Merkel for her approach of “waiting it out” on Greece. He accuses her of having abandoned Greece and of being blind to the increasing tensions between different member states. German media widely cover the Bundestag’s debate on Greece, which shows – according to DLF’s Benjamin Hammer – that no one really knows how to proceed in the matter. EC Commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos made an important intervention, taking a position with regard to the referendum and calling on the people to vote “Yes,” Mega TV reports.

Mr Avramopoulos spoke of the need for a new national negotiation that will be accompanied by a new strategy for the reorganisation of the country, stressing that it is certain that Europe will stand beside the Greeks in such a course, supporting effectively this national effort. In an interview with ERT1, Greek Finance Minister Varoufakis noted that the referendum only concerns a specific proposal of the creditors, stressing that the recommendation by the Greek government to vote “No” at the referendum constitutes a recommendation in favour of the euro, the European course of the country, as well as in favour of a mutual, beneficial agreement. The government had no other solution, except to appeal to the Greek people, he added.

Just hours after apparently holding out an olive branch to the country’s creditors by accepting most of the terms of the economic reform plan they had tabled last weekend, Greek Prime Minister Tsipras urged – in a televised address widely covered by Greek media – his countrymen to vote “No” in a referendum on whether they should accept tough terms for bailout aid, and accused EU leaders of threatening to drive Greece out of the euro, the Financial Times reports.

Mr Tsipras called EU leaders “extremist conservative forces” who had forced the shutdown of Greece’s banks “because the government decided to give people a say”. The European Central Bank, the WSJE reports, has maintained its limits on emergency loans to Greek commercial banks, meaning capital controls will remain in place at least through Sunday’s referendum on the country’s willingness to meet creditor demands. The ECB also made no changes to the amount of collateral banks must post to obtain the liquidity. The decision largely keeps Greek banks in limbo and underscores how ECB officials loath to make any decisions that would upend the political process as it reaches its decisive phase. Some analysts, Corriere della Sera notes, believe some banks may not be able to last out until the end of the week.

©europeanunion2015