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Fico: Slovakia Will Sign Agreement to Provide Loans to Greece
Friday 07 May 2010 Zoom in | Print page
Bratislava, May 7 (TASR) - Slovakia will sign a General Agreement that will allow eurozone members to provide bilateral loans to Greece, Prime Minister Robert Fico said in Bratislava on Friday before setting out for a Euro Group session in Brussels.
Fico, who was speaking after a meeting with representatives of trade unions and employer associations, claimed that providing a loan to Greece is the only viable option. He added that this signature will allow countries that are ready to lend money to Greece to start the mechanism immediately. If Slovakia refuses to sign the agreement, the rest of the eurozone would be prevented to act, stressed Fico.
"Slovakia has no interest in preventing other states providing immediate bilateral loans," said Fico.
The agreement will be still subject to a ratification process in Parliament, however. Fico noted that the matter will be discussed by the new legislature after the June 12 election. The Slovak Parliament will be yet able to block the process of providing financial aid to Athens by Slovakia.
Recent events have indicated that the situation surrounding the eurozone, the euro and financial stability is very serious, said Fico gingerly. He added that Slovakia is ready to meet all its obligations following from its membership in the eurozone (the Maastricht Criteria on economic discipline). He stressed that it will also be crucial how large economies such as Germany and France survive the economic crisis, as the Slovak economy is linked to those economies.
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