Talks to resolve a crippling three-week tractor blockade of highways and border crossings in Greece by farmers collapsed on Sunday, increasing the pressure on a government grappling with the country’s worst financial crisis in decades.
The farmers refused to back down in the row, which is seen as a crucial test of Athens’ determination to impose austerity measures that will redress Europe’s most indebted economy.
On Sunday night, Greek Agriculture Minister Katerina Batzeli signaled that while she remained “open to dialogue,” the government was in no position to meet their demands for about 1 billion euros (US$1.4 billion) in extra subsidies and tax breaks.
“The government is determined to get the country out of the crisis,” she said. “It can’t afford the money they are asking for.”
The blockade, which is believed to cost 25 million euros a day, has disrupted transport, damaged commerce and strained ties with neighboring Bulgaria, where exports have also been hard hit.
The confrontation has put the socialists on a war footing with the subsidy-dependent sector. The EU and markets are piling pressure on Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou to rein in the country’s 300-billion-euro debt, which has spawned fears of imminent bankruptcy for the country. But the government has little room for maneuver.
“Should the government make the slightest concession to them, [it] will then lack the legitimacy to demand sacrifices of other social groups,” political analyst Stavros Lygeros said.
Athens has pledged to roll back its budget deficit from 12.7 percent to 2.8 percent by 2012 through reforms, including spending cuts and increasing tax revenue.
However, Papandreou, elected last October on a pledge that the less privileged would not have to pay the price of fixing Greece’s economy, has been widely criticized for delaying the implementation of painful fiscal policies.
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REGIONAL STABILITY: Taipei thanked the Biden administration for authorizing its 16th sale of military goods and services to uphold Taiwan’s defense and safety The US Department of State has approved the sale of US$228 million of military goods and services to Taiwan, the US Department of Defense said on Monday. The state department “made a determination approving a possible Foreign Military Sale” to the Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office in the US for “return, repair and reshipment of spare parts and related equipment,” the defense department’s Defense Security Cooperation Agency said in a news release. Taiwan had requested the purchase of items and services which include the “return, repair and reshipment of classified and unclassified spare parts for aircraft and related equipment; US Government
More than 500 people on Saturday marched in New York in support of Taiwan’s entry to the UN, significantly more people than previous years. The march, coinciding with the ongoing 79th session of the UN General Assembly, comes close on the heels of growing international discourse regarding the meaning of UN Resolution 2758. Resolution 2758, adopted by the UN General Assembly in 1971, recognizes the People’s Republic of China (PRC) as the “only lawful representative of China.” It resulted in the Republic of China (ROC) losing its seat at the UN to the PRC. Taiwan has since been excluded from