Greek president to host talks with PM, opposition

THE GREEK PRESIDENT Karolos Papoulias is to convene a meeting between the country’s embattled prime minister and the head of the main opposition party in an attempt to broker power-sharing talks and find a way out of a severe political crisis, as pressure mounts to ensure the country avoids bankruptcy.

The president’s office said the meeting would be held at 6.30pm (GMT) Sunday with the premier, George Papandreou, and opposition head Antonis Samaras.

Papandreou survived a confidence vote in his government Saturday, and has said he will step aside if agreement can be reached on the formation of an interim government that will secure a new European debt deal for Greece. Conservative opposition leader Samaras has set Papandreou’s resignation as a condition for participating in any talks.