Greece to need strict structural reform: IMF

BERLIN: Greece is at a crossroads and will need to implement "much stricter structural reforms" to avoid default, IMF mission chief to Greece Poul Thomsen was cited as saying by German paper Welt am Sonntag.

"Greece is at a crossroads," Thomsen told the paper. "It is clear that the programme will not work if the authorities do not take the path that requires much stricter structural reforms than those that we have seen so far."

"It is going two steps forward and one backwards," Thomsen said. "The Greek government understands that many of the most difficult changes lie ahead. At the same time, the political and social fatigue is growing."

Copyright Reuters, 2011