Greeks are being asked to say yes (nai) or no (oxi) to an EU bailout deal
The polls will be opening in less than 13 hours and it feels like time for a closing summary.
- Germany has softened its stance on Grexit and indicated that any possible Greek exit from the eurozone may only be temporary. The German finance minister Wolfgang Schäuble said Greeks would not be left in the lurch.
Greece is a member of the eurozone. There’s no doubt about that. Whether with the euro or temporarily without it: only the Greeks can answer this question.
When he made those remarks, Schäuble probably hadn’t heard that Yanis Varoufakis, the Greek finance minister, thinks the country’s creditors are trying to “terrorize” Greece.
Varoufakis said Greece’s creditors wanted to “instil fear” and blamed them for the government having to close the banks.
What they’re doing with Greece has a name — terrorism. What Brussels and the troika want today is for the yes (vote) to win so they could humiliate the Greeks.
We will be looking forward to the next eurozone finance ministers meeting if Varoufakis does stay in office – he has promised to resign in the event of a yes vote.
- Matteo Renzi reiterated his message of reassurance that Italy will not be following in Greece’s footsteps. The Italian prime minister said Italy was no longer the sick man of Europe.
- Around 1,000 people gathered in London urging the cancellation of Greece’s debts. Similar rallies took place in other UK cities, following demonstrations in Brussels, Rome and Paris earlier this week.
That’s all from me. The Guardian live blog team will be back tomorrow to guide you through polling day and beyond.
Source: The guardian