Greeks back government by voting 'no' to bailout conditions
The Greek public on Sunday backed the government's position towards its international creditors by rejecting the proposal made to the Hellenic nation on 25 June.
Some 61.3% of the Greeks voted 'no' against 38.7% who voted 'Yes'. The turnout was 62.5%
Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras on Sunday said that Greece would go back to the negotiating table on Monday, and highlighted that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) on Thursday had recognised that the country's debt load might be unsustainable.
Read more: Greek debt load may be unsustainable, IMF says
“The mandate you’ve given me does not call for a break with Europe, but rather gives me greater negotiating strength,” Tsipras said after the outcome was made public.
Greek opposition leader Antonio Samaras resigned following the referendum decision, while the Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis early on Monday announced he was stepping down.
Read more: Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis steps down despite 'no' vote
German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande will meet in Paris on Monday night.
The Eurogroup is expected to discuss the state of play on Tuesday.
Reactions to the voting outcome:
Dutch Finance Minister and Eurogroup chairman Jeroen Dijsselbloem warned that Sunday's result was “very regrettable for the future of Greece".
“We will now wait for the initiatives of the Greek authorities. “
Martin Schulz, the president of the European Parliament, also warned that Europe was entering "a very difficult and even dramatic time" unless the Greek government made "meaningful" proposals in the coming hours.
UKIP's leader Nigel Farage welcomed the result. He tweeted: "EU project is now dying. It's fantastic to see the courage of the Greek people in the face of political and economic bullying from Brussels."
Analysts comment
London Capital Group dealer Jonathan Sudaria said that although Tsipras would go back to Brussels with “a stronger hand in negotiations”, for the next days “the only thing he will meet there is incredulity".
“Everyone from Obama to Overtveldt [Belgian Finance Minister] was probably on the phone to Merkel last night, and that is where the next leg of this saga will be decided.”
CMC Markets chief market analyst Michael Hewson pointed out that it would be easy to dismiss the no vote, “but that would be a mistake”, he added.
Barclays analysts believe that the voting outcome is likely to intensify further risk aversion.
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