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24Jul15

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Germans mistrust Greece's commitment to reform: poll

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A majority of German people doubted Greece would actually implement reform measures that it pledged to take in exchange for a new bailout, a poll showed on Friday.

According to the survey commissioned by German ZDF television, 73 percent of German people didn't expect Greece to implement the harsh reform and austerity measures that the country agreed to take in a deal clinched by European leaders earlier this month.

Only 24 percent of Germans believed that Greece would meet its commitment.

The survey result came as Greece and its creditors got ready to start negotiations on the country's third bailout program within five years. The bailout, worth up to 86 billion euros (about 94.25 billion U.S. dollars), was urgently needed by Greece to avoid its bankruptcy.

Germany was the biggest contributor to Greece's previous two bailout programs. As Greece's debt controlling prospect remained dim and its implementation of austerity and reform measures was seen as insufficient over the past years, Germany' patience to save its southern European neighbour approached its limit.

German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble insisted that a temporary exit of Greece from the eurozone was a better option for Greece to resolve its crisis. In a parliamentary debate last week, Schaeuble told lawmakers that talks on the third bailout was the last attempt by the eurozone to save Greece.

According to the survey published on Friday, 71 percent of German people believed that Greece could not avert a default even with the third bailout, although 50 percent of Germans thought Greece should remain in the eurozone.

The poll also found that Schaeuble won more support for his tough position on the Greek crisis than German Chancellor Angela Merkel who warned recently that a "Grexit" would result in "chaos and violence".

In the eyes of 50 percent German people, the strict reform and austerity measures imposed on Greece by creditors led by Germany, though criticized by Greek people and some economists, were appropriate. For another 20 percent Germans, the measures were not harsh enough.

[Source: Xinhua, Berlin, 24Jul15]

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This document has been published on 28Jul15 by the Equipo Nizkor and Derechos Human Rights. In accordance with Title 17 U.S.C. Section 107, this material is distributed without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes.