Greece makes overdue payments, no longer in default: IMF

The International Monetary Fund said Monday that Greece was no longer in default on its loans after remitting about two billion euros ($2.2 billion) to make up for missed debt payments.

Washington: The International Monetary Fund said Monday that Greece was no longer in default on its loans after remitting about two billion euros ($2.2 billion) to make up for missed debt payments.

"I can confirm that Greece today repaid the totality of its arrears to the IMF.... Greece is therefore no longer in arrears to the IMF," said spokesman Gerry Rice in a statement.

Greece's ongoing IMF support program was frozen on June 30 when the country, in the middle of tense negotiations with European Union creditors on more funding, failed to make a key payment on outstanding loans from the Fund.

It missed a second payment on July 13 as the negotiations for bridge funding ahead of a huge third bailout program for the cash-short nation were being finalized.

The repayments were finally made possible by a short-term loan of 7.16 billion euros granted by the European Union on Friday.

The government also needs to make a 4.2 billion euro payment to the European Central Bank on Monday.

Rice said that now that Athens is no longer arrears, the IMF "stands ready to continue assisting Greece in its efforts to return to financial stability and growth."

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