Creditors hand Greece 1 billion euros

BRUSSELS - Agence France-Presse

Retired military and security forces officers hold Greek flags during a rally in central Athens on November 20, 2015, called by retired military and security forces officers against planned austerity measures affecting their pensions and benefits. AFP PHOTO / LOUISA GOULIAMAKI

Greece’s international creditors on Dec. 22 handed over a payment of 1 billion euros under the terms of its third bailout program after Athens met their demands for further tough economic reforms.

The European Stability Mechanism, the 19-nation eurozone’s bailout fund, said the funds will help Athens repay debt, balance the budget and finance projects.

“With the disbursement of one billion euros, the ESM is supporting the Greek government in its reform process,” ESM head Klaus Regling said in a statement.

“The reforms cover a wide array of policy fields that are important to modernize the Greek economy,” he said.

The Greek government said earlier this month it had established a privatization fund and planned to sell a major stake in electricity distributor Admie, the latest reforms sought.

The creditors, the European Commission, the European Central Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the ESM, finalized a third Greek debt rescue program in August worth 86 billion euros ($94 billion) after Greece looked to be on the brink of crashing out of the eurozone.

Two other rescues since 2010 worth a combined 240 billion euros, plus a private-sector debt writedown of more than 100 billion, had failed to stabilize the economy as Athens struggled to implement the austerity measures demanded in return for fresh funding.