No bail-out but EU will not let Greek economy fail

EU leaders attending a special summit in Brussels today are not expected to offer a bail-out to Greece but will instead declare that the Greek economy will not be allowed to fail.

The declaration will come after intensive negotiations during a teleconference meeting between the EU’s finance ministers yesterday in which the growing economic and social problems in Greece and their repercussions for the euro were discussed.

The finance ministers did not agree an immediate rescue deal for the troubled EU state, which has been hit by massive strikes and street protests in recent days and which is battling a 12.7% budget deficit and the highest government debt in the EU, at 124.9% of GDP.