Analysis

Greek banks reopen for the first time in three weeks

In a bid to boost morale and ease the financial squeeze on Greek citizens, banks reopened on Monday, 20 July, after being closed for 3 weeks. Though banks are fully operational, withdrawals will still be capped at €60 per day, but now with the possibility to withdraw a whole week’s worth in one go. Restrictions on overseas payments remain in place. Also, trading on the Athens Stock Exchange is still frozen, along with clearing services and cash settlements for Greek securities.

Iran deal reached

After 18 continuous days of talks, major world powers and Iran reached a historic deal on 14 July in Vienna. The arduous discussions mark the end of 13-year old gridlock over Iran’s nuclear ambitions and will provide sanctions relief for Teheran’s battered economy

Eurozone deal on Greek debt crisis

One of the worst crises in EU history took another crucial turn with a decision made in the morning of Monday, 13 July. In order to avert his country’s financial collapse, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras struck a deal with the other Eurozone leaders that would give Greece its third international bailout in five years. The package is worth €86bn and will be doled out over a period of 3 years.

EU praises UN Libya deal

An UN-proposed peace deal for Libya was signed late Saturday, 11 July 2015, in Morocco by some of the country’s political factions. The agreement was widely hailed as a move towards stability in the war-torn country. The deal lays the foundation for the establishment of a national unity government and the granting of legislative authority to the Tobruk-based assembly.

Merkel visits Balkans amid Euro crisis

Taking time out of the Greek crisis, Chancellor Merkel set off on a tour of the Western Balkans (8-9 July), reassuring the nations of Albania, Serbia and Bosnia-Herzegovina of her support for their eventual joining the European Union. The three Balkan countries have long been campaigning to be part of the 28-nation bloc and see their candidature jeopardized by the EU’s preoccupation with what is happening with Greece.

Hungary approves border fence and anti-immigration law

The Hungarian Parliament has intensified the country’s anti-immigration drive by passing new legislation tightening asylum rules and giving the go-ahead for the construction of a fence on the Serbian border. This counts as the latest in a series of moves taken by Fidesz – the governing party – to curb immigration and limit the number of refugees.

Greece votes ‘NO’

The “No” has won a landslide victory in Greece´s referendum on the draft agreement presented by “The Institutions” on 25 June with more than 61% of the votes cast. Greece’s governing party, Syriza, had strongly campaigned for the “No” and two-thirds of the Greeks who went to the polls on Sunday backed them up.