NaijaRush: Greece debt crisis: 'Last-minute talks after new offer'

Last-minute talks are taking place in Athens over whether to accept an offer by creditors allowing Greece to repay part of its debt, Greek media say.

Greece is hours away from a deadline to repay a €1.6bn (£1.1bn) loan to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) - one it may miss.
One of Greece's creditors made a last-minute proposal of reforms on Monday, reports say.
If Athens accepts the deal, it will free up cash to repay the €1.6bn.
Greek media say the government is in talks over the offer, made by European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker late on Monday.
One of the main points in the new offer is a change in terms to Ekas - a top-up given to poorer Greek pensioners. Athens does not want it scrapped before 2020, but Europe wants it phased out earlier.
The Ekathimerini newspaper initially said Greece's government "listened with interest to what was being proposed" but rejected the offer.
But Greece's national broadcaster ERT said on Tuesday morning that discussions about the proposals were taking place "at the highest level" in Athens.

If a deal is not agreed, Greece will almost certainly not be able to repay the IMF, and would be in arrears.

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Media caption Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras says creditors want to get rid of him

Talks between Greece and its creditors broke down last week, leading to Greek banks having to shut this week.
A referendum is due to take place in Greece on Sunday over whether the country should accept the creditors' proposals
EU leaders have warned that a rejection of the proposals would mean Greece leaving the eurozone - though Greek prime minister Alexis Tsipras says he does not want this to happen.

What will happen next?

01:00 Greek time Wednesday (22:00 GMT): Greece's €1.6bn repayment to the IMF is due.
5 July - the referendum on creditors' proposals, and many say Greece's membership of the eurozone, takes place
20 July - Greece must redeem €3.46bn of bonds held by the European Central Bank. If it fails to do so, the ECB can cut off Greece's access to emergency loans.
 
Speaking live on state TV on Monday evening, Mr Tsipras appealed to Greeks to reject the creditors' proposals, saying this would give Greece "more powerful weapons" to take to the negotiating table.
"We ask you to reject it with all the might of your soul, with the greatest margin possible," he said.
Mr Tsipras also hinted strongly that he would resign if the result of the referendum was a "yes" vote.
"If the Greek people want to proceed with austerity plans in perpetuity, which will leave us unable to lift our head... we will respect it, but we will not be the ones to carry it out," he said.
Marusa, attending a No rally on Monday, says: "I believe in Tsipras and I'm not worried"
Some eurozone leaders, including the Italian prime minister and French president, voiced their concern on Monday that Greek voters would effectively be deciding next Sunday whether or not they wanted to stay in the eurozone.
Meanwhile, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said he felt betrayed by the Tsipras-led government and called on Greek voters to oppose him.

Days of turmoil

Queues were forming in front of some ATMs in Athens - but customers will only be allowed to take out €60 per day

• Friday evening: Greek prime minister calls referendum on terms of new bailout deal, asks for extension of existing bailout
• Saturday afternoon: Eurozone finance ministers refuse to extend existing bailout beyond Tuesday
• Saturday evening: Greek parliament backs referendum for 5 July
• Sunday afternoon: ECB says it is not increasing emergency assistance to Greece
• Sunday evening: Greek government says banks to be closed for the week and cash withdrawals restricted to €60

Greece's government has already been forced to order all banks to be closed until 6 July after the European Central Bank (ECB) decided not to extend its emergency funding.
The ECB is believed to have disbursed virtually all of its ceiling for funds, amounting to €89bn (£63bn).
Long queues of people are continuing to snake from many ATMs, with withdrawals capped at just €60 a day.
Up to 1,000 bank branches will re-open from Wednesday to allow pensioners - many of whom do not use bank cards - to withdraw up to €120.

The question facing Greece

The question which will be put to voters on Sunday will not be as simple as whether they want to stay in the euro or not - instead it asks Greeks to approve or reject the specific terms laid out by Greece's creditors:
"Should the agreement plan submitted by the European Commission, European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund to the June 25 eurogroup and consisting of two parts, which form their single proposal, be accepted? The first document is titled 'Reforms for the completion of the Current Program and Beyond' and the second 'Preliminary Debt Sustainability Analysis'.
"Not approved/NO
"Approved/YES"
Trying to crack the puzzle of the Greek referendum question
Greek debt jargon explained

The Athens stock exchange has also been closed as part of the emergency measures.
The government said it would make public transport free in the Athens area for a week while the banks are closed.
Stock markets in Europe continued to fall soon after opening on Tuesday, after closing down on Monday.
But Asian markets rebounded, with stock markets in Tokyo, Hong Kong and Seoul all rising compared to the previous day.