Merkel to press Greece on reforms during rare Athens visit

German Chancellor Angela Merkel will urge Greece to press on with tough economic reforms and maintain strict fiscal discipline when she visits Athens on Thursday for the first time in nearly five years.

Merkel, whose insistence on austerity measures during Greece's debt crisis made her unpopular among Greeks, will also encourage Greek politicians to support a name deal with the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) that Germany and the European Union hope will foster peace and stability in the Balkan region.

Leftist Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, trailing badly in opinion polls ahead of a parliamentary election this year, has promised to reverse some unpopular reforms following the expiry last August of the third international bailout since 2010.

Far-left parties have called protests against Merkel's visit on Thursday.

Germany, the EU's...