Euro Area Rejects Early Move on Greek Debt, May Hurt Samaras

Dutch Finance Minister Jeroen Dijsselbloem dashed Greek government hopes of gaining debt relief before European elections in late May, saying the euro area would likely wait until August to take up the matter.

Dijsselbloem, also head of the group of euro-area finance ministers, said they would focus over the next six months on Greece’s eligibility for aid payments under the country’s existing rescue program. Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras’s fragile coalition government is keen for extra euro-area support by the time of European Parliament elections May 22-25, asserting Greece posted a budget surplus excluding interest payments last year.