ATHENS: Greece aims to achieve a deal on debt relief with its eurozone creditors in February to remove financial uncertainty and spur economic recovery, Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos said on Monday.

Addressing a conference of investors, the leftist minister said making the ailing euro zone country’s debt sustainable was the key to liberating the economy and restoring confidence among depositors and companies.

“If we don’t make the critical decision in let’s say February 2016, and we push the critical decision back to next summer or even 2017, then all the results will be delayed,” Tsakalotos told the American-Hellenic Chamber of Commerce.

Savers would not return their deposits to Greek banks, banks would not resume lending to businesses and investors would delay decisions to invest if the spectre of a possible Greek exit from the single currency area were not removed.

Published in Dawn, December 1st, 2015