Greek Premier Alexis Tsipras said Wednesday that his government's proposal for a restructuring of the country's national debt will not generate an extra burden for EU taxpayers. "The proposal of the Greek government for debt restructuring is not designed to put an extra burden on European taxpayers," Tsipras told the European Parliament.
"We want to launch a debate about the sustainability of the public debt.
"There can be no taboos between us in finding the necessary solutions".
Tsipras said that his people's No vote to creditor proposals to avert a default was not a rejection of the EU. "The courageous decision of the Greek people in unprecedented conditions was not a break with Europe, but a choice to return to the values at the base of the EU," he said. European officials have told Athens to present serious proposals to solve the crisis and set a deadline of Sunday, when an extraordinary summit of EU leaders will take place, to find a deal.
Tsipras said his government will send a request to the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) for emergency aid later in the day.
"Today we will send our request to the ESM," Tsipras told the European parliament. "I hope that we will respond to this crisis for the whole eurozone in the coming days".
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