European Leaders Voice Frustration With Greece in Debt Crisis

By ALISON SMALEJUNE 7, 2015

The New York Times

GARMISCH-PARTENKIRCHEN, Germany — World leaders on Sunday increased the pressure on Europe to resolve the crisis over Greek debt, hours after one of the chief European negotiators expressed exasperation with the way the Greek leader was handling the talks.

Chancellor Angela Merkel of Germany, host of the Group of 7 summit meeting in the Bavarian Alps, told the public broadcaster ZDF that she and the French president, François Hollande, had spoken to Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras of Greece by telephone late Saturday and had briefed other leaders attending the gathering on the conversation.

“We can’t say yet that the problem is solved,” Ms. Merkel told ZDF. “We are working flat out,” she added, but said that any deal requires Europeans to bind together to help each other, as well as individual efforts from member states.

President Obama also intensified pressure for a resolution, with the White House warning that a failure by Europe to reach a deal could spark broader financial instability around the globe.

In a private meeting between Mr. Obama and Ms. Merkel on the sidelines of the summit, the two agreed “that it was important for Greece and their partners to chart a way forward that builds on crucial structural reforms and returns Greece to sustainable long-term growth,” Josh Earnest, the White House press secretary, said on Sunday.

“There obviously is a deadline that’s looming,” Mr. Earnest added, saying the president was hopeful that Greece would pursue such changes “without causing undue volatility in the global financial markets.”

Earlier Sunday, Jean-Claude Juncker, president of the European Commission, the executive arm of the European Union, accused Mr. Tsipras of failing to disclose important details of the proposal made by Greece’s creditors when he addressed Parliament on Friday.

Mr. Juncker said he wanted Greece to remain in the euro currency zone but could not “pull a rabbit out of the hat.”

Greece has until the end of the month to work out a deal with the European Commission, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund, or it could default on its debt. The three entities lent Greece $240 billion in 2010 and 2012. On Friday, Greece delayed a deadline for a debt repayment to the I.M.F., buying Athens more time to renegotiate its deal.

Speaking before the start of the G-7 meeting, Mr. Juncker said testily that he was still waiting for Greek proposals to counter an offer rejected by Mr. Tsipras last week. That proposal was pulled together on June 1 in Berlin by Ms. Merkel, Mr. Hollande, Mr. Juncker and the leaders of the central bank and I.M.F.

After Mr. Juncker’s tart remarks and a reminder from Martin Schulz, the German who heads the European Parliament, that an agreement was needed, Greek officials reiterated that there was still no acceptable solution on the table.

Mr. Juncker said he had discussed the latest proposal with Mr. Tsipras in Brussels on Wednesday. The Greek leader, according to Mr. Juncker, said he would counter with his own suggestions, but then went before Parliament in Athens on Friday and dismissed the latest European offer as “absurd,” in part because it reportedly required additional cuts in what he considered already meager pensions.

In fact, Mr. Juncker said, he had stressed that a cut in pensions could be negotiable if Greece offered alternative savings. Not relaying that to Parliament had strained trust, Mr. Juncker suggested. He said that Mr. Tsipras remained “a friend,” but that friendship requires observing “some minimal rules.”

Mr. Juncker added that he was now expecting to meet Mr. Tsipras in Brussels on Wednesday and that he expected to receive new Greek proposals by then.

A Greek government official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Athens was still awaiting a reaction to its proposal of last week, which included debt restructuring as a condition for any new agreement.

The German government must have any new arrangement approved by the German Parliament and has insisted there will be no debt restructuring. Other governments that have gone through austerity programs — like Ireland, Portugal and Spain — argue that their voters would rebel against Greece’s being treated differently.

The Greek opposition did not back the government proposal last Friday, although certain parties have indicated that they would support a deal to keep Greece in the eurozone.

A recent poll showed that six in 10 Greeks who were questioned backed the government in its negotiating conduct, down from around seven in 10 in February. The same poll showed 47 percent wanted the government to accept the proposal the creditors made last Monday, while 35 percent wanted to reject it.

Meanwhile, eight in 10 Greeks surveyed said they wanted to stay in the euro, according to the poll, carried out by Metron Analysis for the newspaper Parapolitika on June 3-4. The sample size was 1,003.

Donald Tusk, the former prime minister of Poland, who heads the European Council, which directs European Union policy, also indicated that Brussels was losing patience with Greece’s continued wavering on a deal.

“I think the debate on Greece is very simple,” Mr. Tusk said, speaking alongside Mr. Juncker at a news conference. “Greeks need money; creditors need guarantees,” Mr. Tusk said. If somebody insists on that, he continued, “that person is not a ruthless robber.”

Julie Hirschfield Davis contributed reporting from Krün, Germany, and Niki Kitsantonis from Athens.