Bulletin #129
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Editorial Committee: Achilleas Adamantiades, Dimitri Dandolos, Alex Economides, Gerasimos Merianos Panagiotis Siskos, Stella Tsirka; Associate Editor : Dean C. Lomis, Acting Editor: Costas Efthymiou No. 129 May-June 2015 Member Update- BULLETIN |
At this time of financial tribulation tormenting the people of Greece, the entire Hellenism, both within and outside its geographical Helladic limits, are similarly suffering and deeply exasperated seeking to extricate themselves from the long ordeal they have been experiencing. They all wish strongly that an effective and permanent solution to the immense national debt is reached so that the country can resume its course towards development and prosperity, and the Greek citizens become free from the shackle put on them by international lenders.
In this Bulletin, we project the collective expression for concern of 13 outstanding experts, members of the academic community who, with the conviction of their expert knowledge of economic matters, recommend in the following Declaration urgent action they believe will lead to the abatement of the crisis. We are indebted to Prof. Nicholas Economides, one of the 13 signers of the Declaration, for kindly bringing to our attention the ponderous position.
Sign the Agreement Now!
We have reached the end of negotiation that took several months, which was associated with debilitating lack of liquidity for the Greek State and for the private sector, all with enormous uncertainty. If an agreement with the Europeans is not immediately reached, Greece will default, inside or outside the Eurozone. Grexit would be a total disaster, involving collapse of the banking system due to massive withdrawals, high inflation, tremendous loss of purchasing power for the Greek population, shortages of basic goods, and marginalisation of the country. Even a default within the Eurozone would soon lead to Grexit, since it would be extremely difficult for any Greek government to handle it. It would require enormous support from the ECB, which would not be forthcoming. In a short time, the Greek government — voluntarily or under pressure — would transition to the new Drachma. Thus, both types of default (inside and outside the Eurozone) will lead to the total disaster associated with the new Drachma.
A last-minute agreement will be far from perfect and without the necessary structural reforms. However, it will be much better compared to the chaos of default and Drachma. The Greek government must sign this agreement now!
- Marios Angeletos, ΜΙΤ
- Costas Azariadis, Washington University in St. Louis
- George Constantinides, University of Chicago
- Haris Dellas, Universitat Bern
- Nikos Economides, New York University
- Michael Haliassos, Goethe University Frankfurt
- Yannis Ioannides, Tufts University
- Costas Meghir, Yale University
- Stylianos Perrakis, Concordia University
- Manolis Petrakis, University of Crete
- Chris Pissarides, Nobel Laureate, London School of Economics and University of
Cyprus
- Thanasis Stengos, University of Guelph
- Dimitris Vayanos, London School of Economics
Greek newspaper Kathimerini of June 14, 2015
Additional comments by Prof. Economides on the present status of the economic situation of Greece, the reader can find in the following series of presentations in public media:
- Bloomberg TV, Is It Game Over for Greece?, June 16, 2015
- Skai TV, Greek economic crisis, June 16, 2015 (in Greek)
- Skai radio, Greek economic crisis, June 16, 2015 (in Greek)
- Kathimerini, The solution for the Greek debt problem, Kathimerini, June 14, 2015 (in Greek)
- Kathimerini, Need for immediate agreement, June 14, 2015 (in Greek)
- Kathimerini, Sign the agreement now!, June 14, 2015 (in English)
- Mega TV, Greek economic crisis, June 14, 2015 (in Greek)
- Associated Press, Network neutrality, June 12, 2015
- ERT radio, Greek economic crisis, June 7, 2015 (in Greek)
- Bloomberg, Greece Defers IMF Payment as Merkel Says Resolution Far Away, June 4, 2015
- CNBC.com, Greece has two options: A deal or chaos, June 3, 2015
- Bloomberg News TV, Is a deal in sight?, June 2, 2015
From Our Correspondence
From: Achilles Adamantiades
Date: Wednesday, June 17, 2015 at 10:43 AM
To: Manatos & Manatos <manatos@manatos.com>
Subject: Re: A potential injury to bilateral relations with Greece
Andy and Mike,
This is a well articulated and much needed letter to American policy makers. On the other hand, the Greek policy makers need to take steps to introduce the needed reforms and meet the Europeans halfway. The US Government, especially Secretary Lew, has taken initiatives, as he recognizes the Greek needs and predicament, expressing the US government support.
Also, I take the initiative to send a Vatican Encyclical that was leaked to the press yesterday on the mater of the environment and climate change; The Patriarch is mentioned in this document, indicating that the reformist Pope Francis considers the Patriarch an important ally and collaborator in this effort for the Care of Creation.
Achilles
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Manatos & Manatos 1100 New Hampshire Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20037 202-393-7790 / (fx) 202-628-0225 Dear Friends, We thought you might be interested in our letter (below) to over 50 top American policymakers who can affect policy toward Greece. We took the opportunity of a US government blunder to remind these officials of Greece’s often-overlooked importance to America. ___________________________________________________________________________ Dear __________, As you know, for over five decades and three generations, our family has worked to make bilateral relations with Greece optimal for America. It is in this vein that we bring to the attention of friends like you a potentially serious consequence of our officials’ recent unwise treatment of the people of Greece. At this pivotal juncture in Greek history, some economically devastated and fragile Greeks have been seeking a dramatic departure from the status quo and flirting with Russian President Vladimir Putin. Some Greeks have questioned why their country never sees the benefits of using American access to their important military base in Souda Bay, Crete as a strategic card of negotiation, as Turkey always does with their Incirlik base. Such sentiment could approach reality following the imminent results of negotiations on the German-led economic bailout of Greece. The anticipated difficult situation could lead to yet another election. Such an election could produce a coalition government with much less favorable views about issues crucial to American security interests. Amid this situation where many Greeks see German efforts as attempts to “humiliate” their injured country, our officials took an action seen by some Greeks as additional “humiliation.” Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter recently invited the Greek people’s Minister of Defense to Washington and then bizarrely refused to meet with him. He refused even a face-saving photo op or phone call, despite the invitation emerging from his office in the first place. Headlines in Greece shouted:
This strange decision, though possibly satisfying some short-term goal, seems to have gone out of its way to send a dangerous message to the people of Greece. It could very well have a long-term negative impact on American interests in the region and on our incredibly positive historic relationship. These, after all, are the Greek people: (1) whose Souda Bay base has been crucial to thousands of our planes, ships and troops fighting in Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria and elsewhere in the Middle East; (2) who are our outpost of Western Democracy (with only Israel and Cyprus) in that rapidly retrogressing region; (3) who make up the country that was one of only seven that has been with us in every international conflict in the 20th Century; and (4) who were the first to defeat the Axis Forces in WWII, publicly oppose the Holocaust while occupied by Nazis and who Winston Churchill said were crucial to the defeat of Hitler. Although probably unrelated to this meeting cancellation, just days later, the Greek Prime Minister began discussions with President Putin regarding plans for possible energy and economic cooperation between Russia and cash-strapped Greece. However, should another Greek election materialize with more Greek votes cast against America’s interests, it could be related. We should always treat the Greek people as the great allies they are. However, this should especially be the case during this era when: (1) we have spent virtually nothing to help our great ally’s brutal economic catastrophe, while sending hundreds of millions elsewhere (like the tens of millions we give every year to Caribbean private businesses); and (2) American military efforts against the greatest threats on American lives emanating from the Eastern Mediterranean are dependent on Greece’s Souda Bay’s base. We ask that you, as a friend of Greece, urge others in the Administration to deal appropriately with our Greek allies. Sincerely, Andy Manatos Mike Manatos |
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Manatos and Manatos, 1100 New Hampshire Ave., NW, Washington, DC 20037 |
Παραίνεση του Πατέρα την Ημέρα της Γιορτής του
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From: Ι.Ν. ΑΓΙΑΣ ΚΥΡΙΑΚΗΣ
Subject: Παιδί μου…
“τίμα τὸν πατέρα σου καὶ τὴν μητέρα ἵνα εὖ σοι γένηται καὶ ἵνα μακροχρόνιος γένῃ ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς” (Εξ. 20, 12)
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Ι. Ν. Αγίας Κυριακής Αμφιθέας-Παλαιού Φαλήρου |
Σε μια εποχή όπου η επικοινωνία έχει γίνει τόσο εύκολη αλλά συχνά τόσο κενή, η «Αγία Κυριακή» θέλει να της δώσει μια άλλη διάσταση και ένα άλλο περιεχόμενο. Στείλε την ηλεκτρονική σου διεύθυνση (δική σου ή φίλων σου) στο«Έχεις Μήνυμα» και γίνε μέτοχός της.
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