Pierre Moscovici

The European Union has no plans to extend Greece's financing program beyond the planned August end date, EU Economic Affairs Commissioner Pierre Moscovici said on April 19.

Greece needs a new arrangement with its euro zone government creditors after it exits its bailout on Aug. 20 to make sure that reforms continue to be implemented and budget discipline is maintained, EU Economic Commissioner Pierre Moscovici said.

On exiting its third international bailout in August, Greece will be an "absolutely sovereign country," European Economic and Monetary Affairs Commissioner Pierre Moscovici told a conference on Friday organized by the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center (SNFCC), French magazine Le Nouvel Observateur and Kathimerini in Athens.

Greek opposition leader Kyriakos Mitsotakis on Friday met with visiting European Union's economic affairs commissioner Pierre Moscovici in Athens.

New Democracy said talks centered on the progress of the Greek economy and, more specifically, on the problems caused by overtaxation.

European Commissioner for Economic and Monetary Affairs, Pierre Moscovici speaks in the Greek Parliament before the members of Greek parliamentary committees in Athens, on Friday. [EPA]

Panayiotis Karvounis, the former head of the European Commission's Representation in Athens, is appointed Special Advisor to Pierre Moscovici, the European Commissioner for Economic and Monetary Affairs.

The position is considered crucial due to the decisions the Commissioner has to coordinate in the next few months regarding Greece's issues.

European Commissioner for Economic Affairs Pierre Moscovici called on Friday for the creation of a growth strategy in Greece for the period after the end of the bailout program in August.

Former deputy premier Evangelos Venizelos told a Greek-French forum in Athens titled "A New Hope for Greece" that the country is heading for a "long-lasting memorandum" after August, meaning a monitoring program without the benefits of cheap borrowing from the European Stability Mechanism.

Greece launched a seven-year bond auction on Thursday, its first attempt to tap the international markets this year. It drew strong investor demand despite upheaval in global markets. 

The issue achieved a yield of 3.5 percent, against a starting rate of 3.75 percent, and was more than twice oversubscribed, attracting offers of more than 6 billion euros. 

European Commissioner for Economic and Financial Affairs Pierre Moscovici said on Thursday he was "especially optimistic" about efforts to reach a solution on Greek debt relief.

Greece's third bailout ends in August and debt relief is expected to come up in negotiations over its bailout exit terms in the coming months.