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| E.U. Official Urges Greece and Creditors to Make Concessions | E.U. Official Urges Greece and Creditors to Make Concessions |
| (about 1 hour later) | |
| BRUSSELS — A European Union leader called on Greece and its creditors to make concessions before a deadline of midnight Thursday, as officials in Athens scrambled to draft an economic proposal that might lead to a bailout deal. | |
| Donald Tusk, the president of the European Council, which represents national leaders, said there was scope for an agreement if Greece made “concrete” proposals — and if the creditors, including eurozone members like Germany, were prepared to ease the burden of Greece’s enormous debt. | Donald Tusk, the president of the European Council, which represents national leaders, said there was scope for an agreement if Greece made “concrete” proposals — and if the creditors, including eurozone members like Germany, were prepared to ease the burden of Greece’s enormous debt. |
| In Athens, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras met with government ministers to seek their approval for the broad strokes of the proposal. Euclid Tsakalotos, the finance minister, was drafting that document, advised by French technical experts, Paris officials said. | |
| Mr. Tsipras’s coalition partner and defense minister, Panos Kammenos, told reporters on Thursday evening that the cabinet had approved the proposal and that it would be sent to creditors in the next few hours. | |
| The active role of France, whose officials have been publicly urging that Athens and its creditors find a solution that would keep Greece in the eurozone, is an intriguing development. It raises the question of whether Paris is working with the knowledge of Berlin, which has voiced skepticism about Greece’s ability to come up with a workable plan, or whether a rift is developing between France and Germany on the Greek issue. | |
| Either way, a draft plan from Greece is the crucial next step in a fast-track process leading toward Sunday night. That is when all 28 leaders of European Union member states are scheduled to meet in Brussels to decide — supposedly once and for all — whether Greece can receive bailout funds to rescue its nearly bankrupt economy. | |
| The question is whether the plan expected from Greece by the end of Thursday would include enough specific commitments — to cut pensions, raise taxes and make other economic changes — to convince eurozone finance ministers that the negotiations are worth continuing. | The question is whether the plan expected from Greece by the end of Thursday would include enough specific commitments — to cut pensions, raise taxes and make other economic changes — to convince eurozone finance ministers that the negotiations are worth continuing. |
| Copies of the Greek proposals were expected to go to the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund as well as the leadership of the Eurogroup, the assembly of finance ministers whose countries use the euro. Along with the eurozone nations, the E.C.B. and the I.M.F. have already committed more than 240 billion euros to Greece since 2010. | |
| The most recent round of debt talks with Greece have already dragged on for five months without bearing fruit, and Mr. Tusk on Thursday urged eurozone leaders to accept more debt relief for Athens than has been on the table so far. | |
| Domestic pressure on Mr. Tsipras — who has promised to keep the country in the eurozone while also curtailing austerity — still could undermine an agreement. In particular, Mr. Tsipras must gain the backing of his cabinet, a tough task in view of the painful measures that are needed to win creditors’ approval and that are sure to alienate many of them. | |
| Mr. Tsipras may then need the opposition’s support to push the measures through Parliament if the hard-left faction of his Syriza Party rebels. | |
| Mr. Tusk suggested that a more explicit promise from eurozone leaders to ease repayment terms would smooth the way for Mr. Tsipras to agree to the tough terms on spending and economic overhauls that the creditors are seeking. | |
| Greece owes more than 300 billion euros, or $330 billion. | |
| A more explicit promise from eurozone leaders to ease repayment terms, Mr. Tusk suggested, would also smooth the way for Mr. Tsipras to agree to the tough terms that the creditors are seeking. | |
| “We expect Greece to put forward by the end of today proposals that are both comprehensive and specific,” Mr. Tusk said at a news conference on Thursday with Xavier Bettel, the prime minister of Luxembourg. “If this happens, we will also need a parallel proposal from the creditors,” Mr. Tusk added, noting that he had spoken earlier in the day with Mr. Tsipras. | “We expect Greece to put forward by the end of today proposals that are both comprehensive and specific,” Mr. Tusk said at a news conference on Thursday with Xavier Bettel, the prime minister of Luxembourg. “If this happens, we will also need a parallel proposal from the creditors,” Mr. Tusk added, noting that he had spoken earlier in the day with Mr. Tsipras. |
| “The realistic proposal from Greece will have to be matched by an equally realistic proposal on debt sustainability from the creditors — only then will we have a win-win situation,” Mr. Tusk said. | “The realistic proposal from Greece will have to be matched by an equally realistic proposal on debt sustainability from the creditors — only then will we have a win-win situation,” Mr. Tusk said. |
| Mr. Tusk said he would not elaborate on his telephone call with Mr. Tsipras because of the need for discretion at “such a difficult moment” in the negotiations. | |
| Big lenders like Germany have ruled out any reduction in Greece’s overall debt, and they have said that any easing of repayment terms could be offered only after the Athens government had committed to far-reaching economic changes. | |
| In addition to Germany, the push by Mr. Tusk, a former prime minister of Poland, may have been aimed at former Soviet bloc countries that are now part of the European Union, such as Estonia and Slovakia. Like Poland, they are among the countries that endured decades of Communist rule before undergoing painful overhauls and belt-tightening required to join the European Union and, subsequently, the euro currency union. Their leaders are among those who have taken the toughest line with Athens. | In addition to Germany, the push by Mr. Tusk, a former prime minister of Poland, may have been aimed at former Soviet bloc countries that are now part of the European Union, such as Estonia and Slovakia. Like Poland, they are among the countries that endured decades of Communist rule before undergoing painful overhauls and belt-tightening required to join the European Union and, subsequently, the euro currency union. Their leaders are among those who have taken the toughest line with Athens. |
| Greeks faced with the unwelcome trade-off of signing up to a deal promising more austerity or with losing their country’s membership of the euro were planning dueling rallies on Thursday and Friday. Similar demonstrations have been largely peaceful, but have underscored the deep divisions over how the crisis should be tackled. | |
| Under the slogan “We’re staying in Europe,” citizens who favor a deal with creditors were expected to converge outside the Greek Parliament at 7.30 p.m. on Thursday. A second rally, planned for Friday at 7.30 p.m., also outside the Parliament, was expected to be held under the banner, “Hands off democracy,” and to oppose any deal that involves painful measures. |