The ministers of finance of the eurozone are ready to hold a telephone conference as soon as the outcome of the 17 June legislative elections in Greece is known. “All the arrangements have been made,” European diplomatic sources have said. This phone conference has not yet been decided on, they stressed. The initiative has to come from the President of the Eurogroup, Luxembourg’s Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker. But there will need to be a “consultation” on what to do if the far-left has a clear majority, diplomatic sources added.

The main aim of the meeting seems to be to “harmonise communication” between the Eurogroup members to avoid inappropriate statements in reaction to the results of the election. If such a conference takes place, it should also serve to “coordinate the response to the situation in Greece ahead of the G20 meeting,” which is to be held on 18-19 June in Los Cabos, Mexico. Europe’s partners will not be cutting it any slack and will be expecting answers on tackling the debt crisis.

The finance ministers of the eurozone had already held an urgent telephone meeting, on 9 June – about Spain. The outcome was the decision to grant a 100 billion euro credit line for the country’s banks.