Implementing decision 2019/338 - Prolongation of enhanced surveillance for Greece (notified under document C(2019) 1481) - Main contents

EN

Official Journal of the European Union

L 60/17

Following the expiry of the European Stability Mechanism financial assistance on 20 August 2018, the Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2018/1192 (2) activated enhanced surveillance of Greece for a period of six months, as from 21 August 2018.

Greece should continue key institutional and structural reforms over the medium term so as to ensure their completion and full effectiveness, building on the substantial number of actions implemented by it under the European Stability Mechanism financial assistance programme (‘the programme’). To that end, Greece has made a commitment in the Eurogroup to continue and complete all key reforms adopted under the programme and to safeguard the objectives of the important reforms adopted under that programme and its predecessors.

Greece has also committed to implement specific actions in the areas of fiscal and fiscal-structural policies, social welfare, financial stability, labour and product markets, privatisation and public administration. Those specific actions, which are set out in an annex to the Eurogroup statement of 22 June 2018, will contribute to address potential sources of Greece's economic difficulties.

Since 2010, Greece has received a substantial amount of financial assistance, as a result of which Greece's outstanding liabilities towards the euro-area Member States, the European Financial Stability Facility and the European Stability Mechanism come to a total amount of EUR 243 700 million. Greece received financial support from its European partners on concessional terms and specific measures to place debt on a more sustainable footing were adopted in 2012 and again by the European Stability Mechanism in 2017. On 22 June 2018, it was politically agreed in the Eurogroup to implement additional measures to ensure debt sustainability. The measures include the extension of weighted average maturities by an additional 10 years, the deferral of interest and amortisation by an additional 10 years as well as the implementation of other debt measures. Two additional measures (the abolition of the step-up interest rate margin related to the debt buy-back tranche of the European Financial Stability Facility programme as of 2018 and the restoration of the transfer of equivalent amounts to the income earned by euro-area national central banks on Greek government bonds held under the Agreement on Net Financial Assets and the Securities Market Programme) can be agreed bi-annually in the Eurogroup on the basis of positive reporting under enhanced surveillance on Greece's compliance with its post-programme policy commitments.

Greece's general government balance has been positive since 2016. Greece is expected to have met the primary surplus target of 3,5 % of Gross Domestic Product in 2018 and is projected to achieve the target over the medium term. External net lending turned positive in 2015, and has shown only small deficits thereafter. The economy has continued to recover, with growth at an estimated 2,0 % in 2018, and unemployment is on a declining path. Greece initiated a broad structural reform agenda to improve...