Creditors set out bailout ultimatum for defiant Greeks, sources say

By Jan Strupczewski & Renee Maltezou

Greece's international creditors will put their own final proposal for a cash-for-reform deal to avert a Greek default to eurozone finance ministers for approval on Thursday after Athens let a deadline pass, eurozone officials said.

"If Greece says 'no go' now, it could be the final straw," one senior European official said.

The lenders had given leftist Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras an ultimatum to come up with a credible reform plan by mid-morning (0900 GMT), saying they would otherwise send their own version to Eurogroup ministers.

The dramatic move came hours before European Union leaders meet in Brussels for a summit on migration, the long-term future of the euro zone and renegotiating Britain's membership terms, that has been overshadowed by the Greek debt crisis.

A Greek official said Athens was standing by the proposals submitted on Monday with the inclusion of some modifications made during negotiations this week.

The heads of the European Commission, International Monetary Fund and European Central Bank set Tsipras the deadline to come up with a new, workable proposal of reforms to unlock new funding and avert a debt default next Tuesday.

Tsipras left European Commission headquarters smiling and flashing a thumbs-up sign after three hours of meetings on Thursday but made no comment.

Eurozone finance ministers, known as the Eurogroup, were to meet again at 1130 GMT after cutting short a meeting on Wednesday evening because there was no draft agreement to discuss.

Diplomats said the lenders' tactics reflected exasperation at Tsipras's refusal to compromise on key reforms of pensions, labour markets, wages and taxation, which cross...