Greek Crisis Still Possible, IMF Chief Economist Says

International Monetary Fund chief economist Olivier Blanchard says that a Greek crisis cannot be ruled out.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – International Monetary Fund (IMF) chief economist Olivier Blanchard hopes that the new Greek government will find common ground with international creditors, otherwise the Greek economy could collapse.

“We very much want to come to an agreement and we hope we will… A Greek crisis cannot be ruled out, an event that could unsettle financial markets,” Blanchard said at a press conference in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday.

In February, the country's new leftist government promised to pursue economic reforms after Athens and Eurozone finance ministers agreed to extend the bailout deal with Greece until late June, 2015.

In early April, Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis held negotiations with IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde, having assured her that the government of Greece will comply with all of its obligations to the troika of international creditors, which include IMF, the European Union and the European Central Bank (ECB).

Greece needs to come up with a reform plan before the next meeting with EU finance ministers, scheduled for April 24, in order to receive the next aid package.