Greece can't repay IMF without deal, official says
Official, 'we will pay wages and pensions, not creditors'
20 May, 12:57But those funds will not be enough to tide the country over through the summer, when it faces repayments of several billion euros. Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras' radical left Syriza party won elections in January on promises to repeal deeply resented budget austerity measures that accompanied Greece's two international bailouts, totaling 240 billion euros since May 2010. But his government has run into trouble in negotiations with creditors at the IMF, other eurozone countries and the European Central Bank, with the lenders insisting more reforms must be implemented to ensure the country's economy can become sustainable. Late Monday, Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis said a deal could be reached with lenders within a week - a prediction that eased market anxiety that had seen borrowing rates spike once more and the Athens stock market slide. Tsipras has also faced dissent within his own party, with some members saying Tuesday that lenders were trying to force the government to abandon pre-election promises, and advocating the government make clear it intends to delay repayments.