MADRID, April 16 (Reuters) - The following are comments by euro zone finance ministers and other officials on Friday as they arrive for their meeting in Madrid.
EU ECONOMIC AND MONETARY AFFAIRS COMMISSIONER OLLI REHN
'We have a solid decision taken on Sunday. Our mission will travel to Athens over the weekend, to start work as of Monday. It is a matter of preparing a joint programme of conditionality and financing if needed and if requested. I will inform my colleagues, the Eurogroup, about the state of work with the ECB.'
SPANISH ECONOMY MINISTER ELENA SALGADO
'Greece has been in the first steps but it's up to them to continue.'
EUROGROUP CHAIRMAN JEAN-CLAUDE JUNCKER
'There are no indications that Greece will ask for help today.'
FINNISH FINANCE MINISTER JYRKI KATAINEN
'Today we will have a kind of followup discussion,' (on Greece).
COMMENTS MADE ON THURSDAY
EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK GOVERNING COUNCIL MEMBER EWALD NOWOTNY
On whether Greece has started talks towards activating its aid mechanism:
'Greece has already started talks in that direction. It is not just for theory, it is for practice.'
Asked again if he meant talks about activating aid:
'That's the way I understand it.'
On whether Greece's problems could spread to other countries:
'I don't think there is this perspective.'
Was he concerned that some euro zone countries could have problems providing their share of loans to Greece?
'No, because it was unanimously approved by the heads of state. They know what they are talking about.'
DUTCH FINANCE MINISTER JAN KEES DE JAGER
Asked whether he was concerned that aid to Greece from the International Monetary Fund could be senior to bilateral aid, meaning that if there was a problem aid would be repaid to the IMF before being repaid to European countries, he said:
'No. I think the strict policy conditionality will provide enough guarantees that both IMF as well as Eurogroup funding -- or Eurogroup member funding -- will be repaid.'
EUROGROUP CHAIRMAN JEAN-CLAUDE JUNCKER
On potential German legal challenge to EU's Greek aid package:
'I'm not really concerned.'
'That's a German affair. I don't think it's a real constitutional problem in Germany, anyway the German government has made clear that it will go through a parliamentary decision so I don't think there will be any problems of a dramatic size in Germany.'
On Greece's debt auction on Tuesday:
'It went quite well, there was, so to say, an overbooking and the interest rate is in line with what we expected.'
On renewed widening in Greek bond spreads:
'We have to look very closely to what will happen in the next coming days but it doesn't help to launch any speculation about any market reaction.'
On concerns that other countries could still follow Greece:
'I don't think that any other country is in a position that would be comparable to the one Greece is in.'
FINNISH FINANCE MINISTER JYRKI KATAINEN
Speaking to reporters:
'We will follow up the question of Greece, what kind of impact this Sunday's meeting has had so far.'
'There is not that much more we can do. We have an excellent procedure for what to do if Greece asks for help. There is no need to do additional measures or change decisions.'
'More interestingly, we will discuss coordination of euro zone economic policies. We will have a starting debate on that.'
Asked whether Portugal or Spain could have problems similar to those of Greece:
'I don't think so, other southern countries ... can do a lot through their normal budget policy frameworks. I don't think there is the same type of danger.'
Asked how Greek spreads would behave:
'I think they will narrow after a while.'
Would Greece ask for help?
'It is up to Greece to decide. I will not speculate.'
'The euro is very important for all euro zone countries, we are all in the same boat.'
'The euro has sustained quite well during this turmoil.' Keywords: EUROGROUP/ (Ecofin newsroom +34 91 344 3125) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2010. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
EU ECONOMIC AND MONETARY AFFAIRS COMMISSIONER OLLI REHN
'We have a solid decision taken on Sunday. Our mission will travel to Athens over the weekend, to start work as of Monday. It is a matter of preparing a joint programme of conditionality and financing if needed and if requested. I will inform my colleagues, the Eurogroup, about the state of work with the ECB.'
SPANISH ECONOMY MINISTER ELENA SALGADO
'Greece has been in the first steps but it's up to them to continue.'
EUROGROUP CHAIRMAN JEAN-CLAUDE JUNCKER
'There are no indications that Greece will ask for help today.'
FINNISH FINANCE MINISTER JYRKI KATAINEN
'Today we will have a kind of followup discussion,' (on Greece).
COMMENTS MADE ON THURSDAY
EUROPEAN CENTRAL BANK GOVERNING COUNCIL MEMBER EWALD NOWOTNY
On whether Greece has started talks towards activating its aid mechanism:
'Greece has already started talks in that direction. It is not just for theory, it is for practice.'
Asked again if he meant talks about activating aid:
'That's the way I understand it.'
On whether Greece's problems could spread to other countries:
'I don't think there is this perspective.'
Was he concerned that some euro zone countries could have problems providing their share of loans to Greece?
'No, because it was unanimously approved by the heads of state. They know what they are talking about.'
DUTCH FINANCE MINISTER JAN KEES DE JAGER
Asked whether he was concerned that aid to Greece from the International Monetary Fund could be senior to bilateral aid, meaning that if there was a problem aid would be repaid to the IMF before being repaid to European countries, he said:
'No. I think the strict policy conditionality will provide enough guarantees that both IMF as well as Eurogroup funding -- or Eurogroup member funding -- will be repaid.'
EUROGROUP CHAIRMAN JEAN-CLAUDE JUNCKER
On potential German legal challenge to EU's Greek aid package:
'I'm not really concerned.'
'That's a German affair. I don't think it's a real constitutional problem in Germany, anyway the German government has made clear that it will go through a parliamentary decision so I don't think there will be any problems of a dramatic size in Germany.'
On Greece's debt auction on Tuesday:
'It went quite well, there was, so to say, an overbooking and the interest rate is in line with what we expected.'
On renewed widening in Greek bond spreads:
'We have to look very closely to what will happen in the next coming days but it doesn't help to launch any speculation about any market reaction.'
On concerns that other countries could still follow Greece:
'I don't think that any other country is in a position that would be comparable to the one Greece is in.'
FINNISH FINANCE MINISTER JYRKI KATAINEN
Speaking to reporters:
'We will follow up the question of Greece, what kind of impact this Sunday's meeting has had so far.'
'There is not that much more we can do. We have an excellent procedure for what to do if Greece asks for help. There is no need to do additional measures or change decisions.'
'More interestingly, we will discuss coordination of euro zone economic policies. We will have a starting debate on that.'
Asked whether Portugal or Spain could have problems similar to those of Greece:
'I don't think so, other southern countries ... can do a lot through their normal budget policy frameworks. I don't think there is the same type of danger.'
Asked how Greek spreads would behave:
'I think they will narrow after a while.'
Would Greece ask for help?
'It is up to Greece to decide. I will not speculate.'
'The euro is very important for all euro zone countries, we are all in the same boat.'
'The euro has sustained quite well during this turmoil.' Keywords: EUROGROUP/ (Ecofin newsroom +34 91 344 3125) COPYRIGHT Copyright Thomson Reuters 2010. All rights reserved. The copying, republication or redistribution of Reuters News Content, including by framing or similar means, is expressly prohibited without the prior written consent of Thomson Reuters.
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