According to some Greek media, the Tsipras government has softened towards Brussels and in the next few hours could ask for a six-month extension of the program expiring on 28 February. Two factors would have lightened Athens' position in the negotiations: the fear that the race for ATMs would continue unchecked (more than 20 billion euros have flowed since the beginning of the year) and the short-term need to pay pensions and public salaries.
Athens would not be willing to re-subscribe to the austerity measures that the financing program currently entails, but the Greek government could still submit a request for an extension in Brussels today on the basis of the document submitted on Monday to Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varufakis by the Commissioner for economic affairs Pierre Moscovici. The proposal should then pass to the scrutiny of the Eurogroup, which will decide on Friday.
The Moscovici scheme, in truth, was not a six-monthly one: it envisaged granting Greece a four-month deferral on debt, in exchange for a commitment to maintain a budget surplus and to cancel some reforms envisaged in Syriza's programme.
"I do not accept ultimatums, austerity is dead", said Tsipras in a tough speech to the Greek Parliament, to which he reiterated that Hellenic democracy "cannot be threatened" and that Greece "is not a colony or a pariah of 'Europe".
Brussels did not like the Greek strategy adopted so far: making public the softer draft of the agreement written by Moscovici and then the tougher one presented by Dijsselbloem appeared as an attempt to pit the Commission and the Eurogroup against each other, for show which side the bad guys are on.
