Greece is not discussing a "soft" restructuring of its debt, which would hurt all parties involved, Deputy Foreign Minister Spyros Kouvelis said on Tuesday, rowing back from earlier remarks.
Kouvelis stressed that a "soft" restructuring of Greek debt, or any restructuring for that matter, was not an option, revising earlier remarks in which he said Athens was willing to discuss the idea of a "soft" restructuring.
"The Greek government is not discussing any kind of restructuring as this is negative for all sides," he said. When asked what measures Athens would consider apart from a "soft" restructuring, Kouvelis said that was for the euro zone to decide.
In the earlier interview, Kouvelis had said Greece was willing to discuss the prospect of asking investors to extend the maturities of the Greek debt that they hold, or agree to a "soft" restructuring.
"If it's necessary, we will of course be willing to discuss such things," he said, when asked about the chance of a "soft restructuring" of Greece's debt.
Kouvelis went on to stress that Athens' focus was on improving the productivity of the Greek economy to help it regain its competitive edge.
Jean-Claude Juncker, chairman of the euro zone finance ministers' group, said on Tuesday there was a need to move towards what he called a "soft restructuring" of Greek debt as it would give Athens more time to nurse its economy back to health.
Greek Labour Minister Louka Katseli also said on Tuesday that a "soft" restructuring could be on the cards.
Kouvelis said he was not aware of any talks between Athens and investors on the prospect of a "soft restructuring".
"These will be scenarios that we have to look at if need be," Kouvelis said. "But I think this is a broader question for the whole euro zone that will have to be tackled by the euro group."
He said Athens was proceeding with a "fast-track" plan to privatise its telecommunications firm OTE , which is also southeast Europe's biggest telecom company. He said the government could give an update on the plan by June.
Assets that Athens would sell to raise funds to pay for its debt would include properties, energy infrastructure, railways and state-owned land, Kouvelis said. He said the government's plan to privatise its assets would swing into gear in three to four months from now.
REUTERS
