It now appears that what originally caused this week's political crisis in Greece has been scrapped. The prime minister concocted the proposal for a referendum on the latest bailout package for the country. But now it's his finance minister who's officially killed the plan, indicating once again a rift at the very top of the Greek government. With the threat of a referendum removed, George Papandreou hopes he will secure the backing of his own MPs in the confidence vote on Friday night. But even if he scrapes through this test, speculation is mounting that he will soon call for a new government of national unity and may stand aside in the coming weeks, hoping for a dignified exit.
目前看来,最初引发希腊本周政治危机的问题已经消除了。总理策划对最新帮助本国的救市方案进行公投,他的财政部长正式拒绝了该计划,这就再次表明,希腊政府高层间存在意见分歧。目前对公投的威胁已经消除,乔治·帕潘德里欧希望在周五晚上的信任投票中,争取到本党议员的支持。不过,即使他能通过这些考验,人们还是愈加怀疑他会要求成立全民团结的新政府,并在未来几周内不管事,希望有尊严地辞职。
The French President Nicolas Sarkozy has closed the summit of G20 leaders in Cannes with a pledge to defend the euro. The leaders agreed to boost the resources of the International Monetary Fund, but there were no firm figures. The discussions focused on the financial and political crisis in Italy and Greece. James Robbins has the details.