Greek prime minister meets austerity inspectors
AP, Friday 27 Jul 2012


Greece's prime minister is meeting international austerity inspectors to outline new harsh cost-cutting reforms, without which the country would likely lose the rescue loans that are keeping it afloat.

Antonis Samaras, whose conservative-led coalition came to power just over a month ago, is under intense pressure to implement and expand on his predecessors' reform pledges.

The meeting in Athens Friday comes a day after EU Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso urged Samaras to "deliver, deliver, deliver" on the promises.

European Union, International Monetary Fund and European Central Bank officials started a new scrutiny of Greece's austerity program this week.

The debt-crippled country has been surviving on international bailouts since May 2010. To secure them, it imposed deeply resented spending cuts, slashing incomes and salaries while hiking taxes.

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