Greece and its bailout creditors will begin their long-awaited final push towards completing a new €86bn rescue when negotiators return to Athens today for the first time in months in the hope that a deal can be concluded in just a matter of weeks.
The decision to restart talks in Athens after the long hiatus — the government had refused to conduct negotiations in the Greek capital until talks were forced on prime minister Alexis Tsipras at last week’s summit — came after the Greek parliament passed a final slate of reforms yesterday morning that creditors had demanded.
Although some officials remain sceptical an agreement can be reached before August 20, when Greece must make another large debt payment to the European Central Bank, the return of negotiators to Athens marks a turning point in the six-month stand-off.