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Greece crisis: EU bailout talks in Athens delayed

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eu-imf-greece_650x400_61434310901High-level talks between Greece and its European creditors on a third bailout for the country have been delayed due to logistical problems, officials say.

Government officials had been expected to meet representatives of EU creditors in the Greek capital on Friday (24 July).

But a European Commission spokeswoman later said those representatives would arrive "in the coming days".

Greek MPs have approved tough new conditions set by the EU lenders for talks on the €86bn (£60bn) bailout.

It is unclear when International Monetary Fund officials will join the negotiations.

The Washington-based IMF wants Greece's debt burden to be reduced to a level it considers "sustainable", but it faces resistance from reluctant European partners.

EU officials said on Friday that there were "logistical issues to solve" before high-level talks with Athens could begin, but that negotiations were taking place at a technical level.

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The Greek team had been expected to meet top representatives from the European Commission, European Central Bank (ECB) and European Stability Mechanism (ESM) - the eurozone's main bailout fund.

Talks on the bailout package are expected to last a month.

Tight capital controls, introduced at the end of June, remain in place to prevent a run on Greece's cash-strapped banks.

PM Tsipras faced a backlash from MPs in his own left-wing Syriza party, during two parliamentary votes on austerity measures required by the creditors in order for negotiations to start.

But he secured parliament's backing after a second crucial vote passed early on Thursday.

The reforms debated this week included changes to Greek banking and an overhaul of the judiciary.

Last week, Greece passed an initial set of austerity measures, including tax rises and pushing back the retirement age.

Tsipras has said that he is not happy with the measures imposed by creditors but that his government was forced to choose a "difficult compromise" to avoid Greece exiting the eurozone.

A decision on more contentious measures - phasing out early retirement and tax rises for farmers - has been pushed back to August.

Demonstrations have taken place on the streets of Athens against the bailout deal and trade unions have taken strike action.

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