Freshly out of the Greek Finance Minister’s chair, Yanis Varoufakis has declared that his German counterpart Wolfgang Schäuble wants to punish Greece – sacrificing it to reform the monetary union. In his article forDie Zeit, Varoufakis said that the goal of the German finance minister is to "discipline member states who opposed his very special plan to reform the eurozone by sharpening the [...]

The Greek parliament has voted in favor of a bill enacting the reforms required by its European creditors as part of a new bailout plan. This paves the way for the controversial 85-billion-euro bailout deal defended by Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras. An overwhelming majority of Greek MPs voted in favor of the reform package, with 229 voting ‘Yes,’ 64 voting ‘No’ and 6 abstaining. [...]

For the so-called 'radical leftist' from Greece is only the latest in a long line of ‘radicals’ and 'leftists' to betray the people who had voted for them and cave into the demands of imperialist international finance capital. The only surprising thing about Alexis Tsipras' capitulation to the troika is that anyone should be surprised by it. [...]

A summit of all EU leaders scheduled for Sunday has been cancelled with eurozone leaders only meeting to "conclude talks on Greece" On Saturday, a meeting of Eurogroup finance ministers was adjourned without reaching any conclusion. Early on Sunday, Donald Tusk, the president of the European Council, tweeted that the eurozone leaders’ meeting will start at 14:00 GMT. [...]

As cash withdrawals from Greek banks reach €100 million a day the country’s banking system will end up bankrupt on Monday if no deal with creditors is reached over the weekend, some senior bank executives told the Financial Times (FT) on Friday. Cash withdrawals are at a high rate despite capital controls imposed by the Greek government. [...]

Greece may take EU institutions to court to stop its creditors from pushing the country out of the Euro-zone. Athens' bailout expires Tuesday and a default could mean it is exiled by Brussels. “We are taking advice and will certainly consider an injunction at the European Court of Justice. [...]

As an equal member of the EU, Greece does not need to ask permissions from anyone to let the Greek people speak and have their voices heard, PM Tsipras told his parliament, promising that the state's sovereignty and future will be decided via referendum. Referendums have been used all across Europe as a way for people to directly express their will and have their voices heard, and Greece is ful [...]

Ukrainian Finance Minister Natalie Jaresko doesn't rule out the country failing to make a $120 million coupon payment on July 24 and default. A Goldman Sachs analyst made the forecast on Wednesday. Ukraine could theoretically default next month, as in May the country’s parliament adopted a law allowing a moratorium on foreign debt repayments. [...]

The IMF moving away from supporting Greece while remaining eager to underwrite bankrupt Ukraine underlines the dramatic collapse in EU power. It’s probably because it rolls off the tongue more easily. The phrase ‘poker face,’ I mean. The serious exponents of the art of never giving away the slightest facial tic must surely be synchronized swimmers. [...]

A wing of Greece's anti-austerity Syriza party is eyeing a plan to default on government debt and replace the euro with its own national currency in case negotiations on a bailout with its creditors fail, media have reported. The plan envisions a default similar to the one implemented by Iceland during the 2008 financial crisis, along with the nationalization of the Greek banking system. [...]

Moscow is expecting Kiev to clarify whether the latter is going to honor Ukraine's international commitments made by the previous authorities, including the $3 billion debt to Russia, after President Poroshenko dubbed it a "bribe" to Viktor Yanukovich. “In the first place, we are expecting some kind of explanations on whether the current Ukrainian authorities are planning to reject their stat [...]

International Monetary Fund representatives have cut short negotiations with Greek officials in Brussels, after they failed to present a viable reform plan. The move has left Athens, due to repay €1.6 billion by the end June, on the edge of default. “The ball is very much in Greece’s court,” IMF spokesman Gerry Rice told the media during a specially scheduled announcement, before his te [...]

A fundamental problem for Greece is that at the end of the day it wants to be in Europe but doesn’t want to have austerity policies, Mark Blyth, professor of political economy at Brown University, told RT’s “In the Now.” Greece has delayed its IMF debt payment until the end of June. [...]

Russia will appeal to the International Court of Justice if Ukrainian President Petro Poroshenko signs a moratorium on the payment of Ukraine's external debt into law and fails to pay its debt to Russia, said Russian Finance Minister Anton Siluanov. Siluanov said Ukraine was virtually defaulting on its debt, adding that Russia doesn’t yet have grounds to lodge any claims. [...]

The euro fell to a two-week low on Wednesday following a Greek government warning that it will miss the June 5 IMF payment deadline without a deal with the Troika by then. The single currency traded at $1.1115, down 0.4 percent at 11:36am MSK on Wednesday. It declined 0.71630 against the British pound and 134.34 against the Japanese yen. [...]

Finland has struck a blow for genuine exceptionalism in Europe. Anti-NATO parties dominated polls while Euroskeptic cred was championed not only by the longstanding anti-EU party, but also, uniquely within the eurozone, by the Social Democratic party. Depending on your perspective, Finland may conjure recollections anywhere from Sibelius’ exquisitely lyrical Karelia Suite to the speedy monosy [...]

Iceland is planning to formally withdraw its EU application, the country's prime minister told the national radio station. Reykjavik also wants to lift capitals controls imposed on Iceland by Brussels after a financial crisis hit the country in 2008. Despite expected public protests, Iceland is going to make a second attempt to withdraw its application to become a member state of the European U [...]

Hundreds of political activists will gather in London on Saturday to protest a controversial EU-US trade agreement campaigners warn will enhance corporate power, and promote the privatization of vital public services. The trade deal, known as the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP), is currently being negotiated behind closed doors in Brussels. It has been the subject of heate [...]

The US may no longer be in control of the global economy, warned former Treasury Secretary Lawrence Summers, urging Washington to regain dominance by honoring commitments and stopping its own hypocrisy. China’s establishment of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), and Washington’s failure to stop its traditional allies from joining, was a development without precedent since the [...]

The $17.5 billion loan approved by the IMF won't save Ukraine from hopeless poverty; instead, it will inflict a blow on the country's population already living on the breadline, said the ex-head of the National Bank of Ukraine Sergei Arbuzov. None of the options proposed by the IMF would improve the economy, said Arbuzov to Izvestia, adding that the biggest mistake made by the government was wo [...]

A curious thing happened today. To quiet protests over food, president Petro Poroshenko ordered the minister of the food reserve to fill the shelves of stores with flour, sugar, canned meat, and buckwheat from the reserve. Well guess what? There was no food in the reserve. It has either been looted (like the vanishing gold), or it was fed to the army. [...]

Ukrainian supermarkets have imposed rationing of basic products after the drastic fall in the value of the hryvnia. The currency has lost 70 percent of its value causing people to stockpile food and buy electronics as a hedge. Restrictions apply for goods such as cooking oil, flour and sugar, Ukraine’s news agency UNN reports Wednesday. [...]