Brussels: Greece has submitted new bailout reform plans to an impatient eurozone in a last-ditch effort to save the country's collapsing economy and its fragile place in the single currency.
With the crisis reaching a climax that could have dire consequences for the global economy, the proposals from Athens landed on Thursday in Brussels less than two hours before a midnight deadline.
Eurozone officials will now study the details of the plan, which creditors say must include pension and tax reforms, before a make-or-break summit of all 28 European leaders on Sunday.
"New Greek proposals received by Eurogroup president Jeroen Dijsselbloem. Important for (creditor) institutions to consider these in their assessment," said Michel Reijns, a spokesman for the head of the eurozone finance ministers. The radical left government of Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras had spent the day huddling in Athens to produce a plan acceptable to its partners, especially sceptical Germany, in return for billions of euros in loans to keep the country afloat.
Details of the new plan were not immediately available. But there was growing pressure for the eurozone to ease Greece's crushing 320-billion-euro ($350-billion) debt burden as part of any plan.
EU President Donald Tusk said Greece's creditors must make a "realistic" proposal for managing the debt if Athens delivers a workable programme, echoing similar calls by the IMF and United States.
Greece's Parliament is now set to vote on the reform plan today. Anti-bailout protesters gathered in central Athens on Thursday night.
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