European officials on Thursday sought to calm fears over a possible financial collapse in Greece, saying that short-term aid to Athens was imminent, even as the euro slumped and concern heightened that debt troubles could engulf larger economies such as Spain.
Olli Rehn, the European Union’s economic commissioner, said a crucial $17 billion aid disbursement to Greece from the E.U. and the International Monetary Fund would land in Athens by early July, in time to prevent the nation from running out of cash to pay its creditors. Release of the funding, part of Greece’s $160 billion bailout approved last year, was being held up by deadlocked talks over the size and shape of a second massive bailout that the country now needs as its financial straits worsen.
The Washington Post
