Eurogroup Chairman Jeroen Dijsselbloem welcomed the progress in Greece talks but he said more time is needed to bridge the remaining gaps and to reach a comprehensive agreement.
“We will continue to monitor the situation and we stand ready to meet as soon as the institutions confirm that there is a basis for a successful conclusion,” Dijsselbloem said in a statement on Monday in Brussels after the meeting of Eurozone finance ministers.
“There are time constraints and liquidity constraints, hopefully we will reach an agreement before time runs out and before money runs out,” he said.
Ministers reiterated that its statement on February 20 remains the valid framework for the discussions.
Once the institutions reach a conclusion of the current review, the Eurogroup will decide on the possible disbursements of the funds to Athens.
Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis told reporters the the financial situation of the country is a terribly urgent issue. “We are talking about the next couple of weeks.”
There were fears of Greece defaulting on the debt payment to the International Monetary Fund that is due on Tuesday. However, reports said quoting a Greek finance ministry official that the order for the repayment of EUR 750 million has been executed on Monday.
Earlier Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras floated the prospects of a referendum on any deal in Brussels. Varoufakis said the referendum is not on the radar for the moment.
The Economic and Financial Affairs Council is set to meet in Brussels today. It will negotiate the proposal for the establishment of a strategic investment plan and also adopt in-depth reviews of macroeconomic imbalances in 16 member countries. Cyprus and Greece are not subject to the reviews.
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