A Conversation about the Greek Elections and the Future of the Eurozone

Following the New Democracy party’s victory in the Greek elections on June 17, Donald Kohn, Douglas Elliott and Michael Klein discussed the vote’s implications for Greece and the euro, the situation in Spain and the G20 summit.

“My point of view: we dodged a bullet, but the gun is still loaded. And even outside of Greece, maybe particularly outside of Greece, there are many other areas where things could go wrong.” – Doug Elliott

“The election is good news for the global financial system because if nothing else it’s going to buy some time and give these guys a chance to adjust to potential downside risk.” – Donald Kohn

Topics covered by Elliott, Klein and Kohn include:

• The worst case scenario that was avoided with the New Democracy party’s victory.

• The short- and long-term problems facing Greece, including its unsustainable debt level in the government and the country’s lack of competitiveness in private sector business.

• Whether the election’s results will effect other European leaders’ willingness to help by moving Greece’s deficit targets.

• What this result may mean for Spain, Portugal and other countries facing similar situations.

• Europe’s negative effect on financial markets and the global economy, including the United States.