Despite the recent resolve to give Greece the rest of the aid package for this year, there’s always the concern about the next aid package. The battle has shifted to the future, and the shape of the battle is already familiar.

Greek Prime Minister George Papandreos has seen the writing on the wall. He wants Greece to continue to be a member of the EU. In order to do so, following the dictates laid down by Germany and the Northern Europeans, he claims he will make new cuts and sell off state assets. He will ignore the protests about cuts that will eliminate 1000’s of government jobs.

Papandreos is taking big political risks. He may be voted out in the next election in a country used to high government employment and great inefficiency. But as Andreas Schmitz,President of the BdB, said on Wednesday, “An extension of Greek sovereign debt maturities could be a possible solution in potential restructuring of the country’s debt.”

Europe remembers the two world wars and the part that economics played in them. They have vowed never to go there again.

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Belshazzar’s Feast, the Writing On The Wall

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Andreas Schmitz

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