FRANKFURT (MNI) – Greece has little alternative to selling off
assets, repaying its debts and shoring up its economy, since debt
restructuring or an exit from monetary union could jeopardize the entire
Eurozone, according to German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble.
“Monetary union obliges all members to become competitive,” the
minister said in an interview with the Germany business daily
Handelsblatt published Thursday.
Yet Schaeuble acknowledged that Athens could need “more time” than
previously thought to consolidate its budget. If the evaluation program
now under way concludes that the current bailout program is
insufficient, “we must find a solution,” he conceded.
“Many people familiar with the situation say that if Greece became
insolvent, the fallout could be more catastrophic than the collapse of
Lehman Brothers,” Schaeuble noted.
The minister conceded that the European Union had not yet explored
all options to lend Greece further support and bolster its economy over
the medium term. He suggested investment in solar energy there as one
possibility.
[TOPICS: M$G$$$,M$X$$$,M$$CR$,MGX$$$]
