European troika

Bailout: The measures that Greece needs to implement to get new funds. The legal name of a bailout is Memorandum of Understanding.

A new term has been added in the long list of code names used in the negotiations between Greece and its international creditors, after the recent replacement of "Troika" by the "Institutions."

By Nikos Chrysoloras, Eshe Nelson & Rebecca Christie

By Elena Becatoros

Greece's new government is "radically opposed" to the privatization of certain businesses, particularly in the energy and infrastructure sectors, a senior cabinet minister said Wednesday as reforms talks with creditors were due to begin.

A team from Greece?s international creditors is heading for Athens, as the government prepares to open up its accounts for inspection.

The euro area's sources in Brussels said a list of reforms sent by Finance Minister Yannis Varoufakis has neither been approved nor disapproved, contrary to media reports in Greece, which claimed that the list was rejected.

Lawmakers in Germany have overwhelmingly voted for a four-month extension of the bailout program agreed between Greece and the "Troika" of international lenders.

Out of 631 lawmakers present, 542 approved, with 32 against and 13 choosing to abstain.

Economic expert Guntram Wolff detailed the prospects and risks facing Greece in the long run, speaking to DW this week.

Asked if Greece is a special case and different from Spain, Portugal and Ireland, the Brussels-based analyst says:

In his statements during a meeting of the European Economic and Social Committee of the European Parliament, EC President Jean Claude Juncker stressed that the Troika insulted Greece’s dignity, while he described it as “undemocratic” and further noted that that “mistakes were made”.

In an article entitled "Final showdown approaches for EU and Greece," Peter Spiegel, the correspondent for the Financial Times in Brussels, presents three possible scenarios with regard to the negotiations between Greece and its creditors, in view of the critical Eurogroup meeting on Monday.