New Greek government wins confidence vote

Athens : The new Greek coalition government led by Lucas Papademos has won the confidence vote in parliament.

The government comprises the country’s two leading parties — the leftist Pasok and the centre right New Democracy, as well as the small far-right Laos party.

Papademos has said his priority is ratifying the EU 130 billion euro bailout package and imposing austerity measures that have provoked massive protests across the country.

“Dealing with Greece’s problems will be more difficult if Greece is not a member of the eurozone,” Papademos told MPs before the vote Wednesday.

He said earlier Greece must present written guarantees that it will comply with the EU’s demands for it to comply with the terms of the bailout package.

Papademos took office over the weekend following the resignation of prime minister George Papandreou. He stepped down after he called for a referendum on further domestic spending cuts, but later backtracked amid protests from Brussels.
IANS

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