EU announces agreement with Greece on new budgetary cuts

BRUSSELS: The European Union announced agreement early Friday between Greece, the EU and the IMF on the final details of 28 billion euros worth of savings that Athens needs to implement over the next five years.

"The European Commission, the International Monetary Fund and the European Central Bank (the troika) and the Greek authorities have reached tonight a satisfactory agreement on a set of measures to close the fiscal gap for the years 2011-2014," said a commission statement.

The commission said the deal among international backers on the ground in Athens now has to be "translated into concrete legislative measures."

That also goes for a related plan to raise tens of billions of euros from selling off state holdings.

"The commission is looking forward to the voting of both legislative bills next week in the Greek parliament," by June 30, it added.

Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2011