Prokopis Pavlopoulos

To Potami on Tuesday nominated Nicos Alivizatos, a professor of constitutional law, as a candidate for Greece's president.

?Everyone has an obligation to contribute to efforts to deal with the unprecedented problems facing the country,? Alivizatos said after accepting the proposal made by the centrist party's leader Stavros Theodorakis.

European ministers raised the pressure on Greece to accept a last-minute debt deal on Tuesday as the radical leftist government in Athens remained defiant refusing ?blackmail? from Brussels.

Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has nominated former conservative ND minister Prokopis Pavlopoulos for the post of president of the republic, making the announcement to his MPs on Tuesday.

The meeting of SYRIZA’s Parliamentary Group concluded shortly before 17.00 (Athens time) with the much anticipated announcement of SYRIZA’s candidate for the position of the President of the Republic. The Prime Minister nominated in his speech former ND Minister Prokopis Pavlopoulos for President, a choice that came as a surprise to many.

Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras is due to announce on Tuesday at 4 p.m. to his parliamentary group the name of the man or woman he would like to succeed President Karolos Papoulias.

After the announcement of SYRIZA?s candidate, the first round of voting for the next president is due to take place on Wednesday evening at 7.30 p.m.

The name of EU Migration, Home Affairs and Citizenship Commissioner Dimitris Avramopoulos was brandied as the Radical Left Coalition (SYRIZA) government's proposal for presidential candidate however the announcement that was to have taken place on Sunday was postponed.

It is expected that Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras will name his party?s candidate for president this weekend.

The process of electing a successor to incumbent Karolos Papoulias has been delayed due to talks between government officials and their eurozone counterparts.

 Prokopis Pavlopoulos nominated as candidate for president

Greece is going ahead with reform measures flouting its bailout obligations, with Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras Tuesday calling for parliament to vote on a series of social reform bills at the end of the week.

Prokopis Pavlopoulos, a centre-right moderate, will be the government's candidate for president, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has said.

Speaking to SYRIZA's parliamentary group on Tuesday, Tsipras said the decision to nominate the former conservative Interior Minister reflected the need for political and social consensus.

The majority of Greeks support the government, an opinion poll showed Saturday, also finding that most people are satisfied with the outcome of negotiations with the country?s foreign lenders.