Tsipras Faces Mutiny After Capitulating to Demands
by Eleni ChrepaIan WishartRebecca Christie
July 13, 2015 — 8:03 AM EDT
Updated on July 13, 2015 — 11:02 AM EDT
Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras returned to face a mutiny within his coalition after he surrendered to European demands for action to qualify for up to 86 billion euros ($95 billion) of aid Greece needs to stay in the euro.
Tsipras arrived back in Athens to confront lawmakers from his Syriza-led bloc who rebelled this weekend when he sought their endorsement for spending cuts, pensions savings and tax increases. He met with his closest aides to chart the path ahead, as the Greek parliament faced a Wednesday deadline to pass into law key creditor demands including a value-added tax overhaul, broadening the tax base to increase revenue and curbing pension costs.
With the threat of defections rippling through his bloc, Tsipras will “have to change his administration and clear out hardliners and radicals from his party,” as well as rely on opposition support to pass the necessary measures, said Eurasia Group analysts Mujtaba Rahman and Federico Santi. “But it is a tough call to determine how Tsipras will go about doing this.”
Attention is shifting to the parliamentary hurdles ahead before Greece can even begin negotiations with creditors to access a third international bailout in five years. The euro fell as the scale of the challenges sank in and the European Central Bank held off from expanding its aid for Greek lenders.
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http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-07-13/tsipras-faces-syriza-mutiny-after-capitulating-to-demands
