Most aid to Greece circles back
http://www.telegram.com/article/20120529/NEWS/120529424/1237
Its membership in the euro currency union hanging in the balance, Greece continues to receive billions of euros in emergency assistance from a so-called troika of lenders overseeing its bailout.
But almost none of the money is going to the Greek government to pay for vital public services. Instead, it is flowing directly back into the troika’s pockets.
The European bailout of 130 billion euros ($163.4 billion) that was supposed to buy time for Greece
is mainly servicing only the interest on the country’s debt — while the Greek economy continues to struggle.
“Greece will not default on the troika because the troika is paying themselves,” said Thomas Mayer, a senior adviser at Deutsche Bank in Frankfurt.
In an elaborate payment system that began after the May 6 election that brought down the Greek government and is meant to ensure that the Greeks do not touch the cash, the big three creditors are now wiring bailout payments to an escrow account in Greece. There the money sits for two or three days — before much of it is sent back to the troika as interest payments on the Greek bonds that Europe accepted under terms of the bailout deal struck in February.
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Again there are so many wagnerian myths out there such as Greece is "given" money, when the truth is all the money is doing is paying back the troika themselves and those irresponsible enough to have lent the money in the first place.. same as in Spain and Ireland... fuelling property booms on cheap credit... mind you the bailout loans are made at a 10- 20% profit...
