London: Greece is reportedly considering ditching the Euro in favour of the US dollar in a move that would humiliate Brussels, according to media reports.
President Donald Trump’s pick for EU ambassador Ted Malloch has claimed that senior Greek economists are looking into taking on the American banknotes if the country turns its back on the European currency, Daily Mail reported.
Prof Malloch was interviewed on Greek TV, where he said Greece leaving the EU would be the best option for residents, and added the current situation is “simply unsustainable”.
“I know some Greek economists who have even gone to leading think tanks in the US to discuss this topic and the question of dollarisation,” he told Skai TV, according to the Express.
Prof Malloch said German leaders, including Angela Merkel, were “freaked out” at the humiliating possibility of losing Greece to a rival currency, which would be a devastating blow to the EU project. “Such a topic of course freaks out the Germans because they really don’t want to hear such ideas,” he said.
This comes days after one of EU’s most powerful finance chiefs warned Greece will be forced out of the Eurozone if it fails to address its ailing finances.
EU economic affairs official Pierre Moscovici is due in Athens for talks with Greek PM Alexis Tsipras on Wednesday in an effort to unblock bailout negotiations.
