By Magda Panoutsopoulou
ANKARA
After a meeting that lasted almost seven hours on Monday, Greek politiical parties agreed to restart negotiations with European creditors.
The leaders of the three main opposition parties said they had agreed on the need for consensus, and negotiations with Greece's EU partners must continue in order to find a solution that will allow Greece to remain in the eurozone.
The Greek Communist Party refused to join the meeting and did not subscribe to the statement.
Vaggelis Meimarakis who is acting as head of the main opposition New Democracy party after Antonis Samaras' resignation on Sunday, and until a new party leader is elected, stated that he had arrived with a "desire to reach understanding". He blamed the government for not reaching out earlier and that the situation is now much worse than before.
"Now we have an obligation to contribute in order to achieve unity and have the calmness to encourage the government to bring an agreement that will have broader support,” he said.
Leader of ANEL and junior coalition Panos Kammenos said: "Shortly we will have a joint announcement signed by all the political leaders apart from the general secretary of the Communist Party. This is a great day....when the whole of the political system gives the prime minister the power to negotiate on behalf of the majority of the Greek people. It is up to Europe to find an immediate solution, with growth."
Stavros Theodorakis leader of Potami said that the government and the prime minister now hold the responsibility for the negotiations and added that “we must all be united and the political leaders must be useful and determined."
Newly elected Pasok leader Fofi Gennimata criticised the government from her side for not launching such an initiative earlier and for waiting until the closing down of the banking system. She added that the negotiations must continue, with the government responsible for finding a solution that will keep the country within Europe.
"The government has no mandate for a break with Europe, the people's sacrifices must be vindicated," she stressed.
Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras made no statements as he left the presidential mansion and headed straight to the government headquarters in the Maximos Mansion.
Tomorrow Tsipras will travel to Brussels to present new proposals to the Eurogroup, accompanied by his new finance minister Euclid Tsakalotos.
