Greece debt talks to resume Monday after breakdown
Talks between debt-strapped Greece and its creditors broke down Thursday after the parties were unable to reach an agreement.
Finance ministers from the 19-nation eurozone held an emergency meeting with Greece in Brussels on Wednesday, but both sides failed to deliver a plan of action or even issue a statement. The talks are due to resume Monday.
Jeroen Dijsselbloem, the head of the eurogroup of finance ministers, said detailed proposals were not discussed, and that there wasn't enough common ground to chart the road to the next meeting.
"It was my ambition to agree on the steps to take the next couple of days so we could spend them well and make more progress between now and Monday," he said. "Unfortunately we've not been able to do that so we will continue our talks on Monday and move on from there."
Despite the apparent impasse, Belgian Prime Minister Charles Michel said, "Europe's magic is to always find solutions even when everyone believes it's impossible."
Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras sounded a conciliatory tone Thursday. "We will need to find a solution that respects the positions of all parties, so this agreement will have to be based on the core values of Europe, democracy and the vote of the people, but also on the necessity to respect the European rules," he said.
Greece's finance minister, Yanis Varoufakis, laid out hope that progress was possible. He stressed that Greece would insist on agreeing on a new bailout program, rather than extending the current one, which "has been catastrophic."
Most stock markets were higher Thursday, with Athens' main index up more than 5%.
Tsipras, whose radical-left Syriza party was elected last month, has said there is "no way back" for his radical new government in its quest to rewrite the country's bailout commitments.
That has put him on a collision course with German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble who said negotiations would be dead if Athens pulls out of the current bailout program.
Germany is the biggest European contributor to Greece's $270 billion in rescue loans. Schaeuble had said there was no chance of reaching a final deal in Brussels on Wednesday.
The severe austerity measures insisted on by Greece's lenders have contributed to a crippling economic situation, with unemployment levels at 25%. The country's citizens have also been battered by five years of income cuts and tax hikes.
Without an extension or restructuring of its debt, Greece is in danger of going bankrupt and may even be forced out of the eurozone. Its loans expire on Feb. 28.
Contributing: Kim Hjelmgaard, Associated Press