By Andrea Thomas
DRESDEN, Germany--U.S. Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew urged
international finance officials to resolve the standoff over
Greece's bailout package as quickly as possible, reflecting global
jitters that a possible Greek exit from the eurozone may
destabilize the world economy.
"The sooner there is a serious conversation, the better," Mr.
Lew said about Greece's negotiations with its international
creditors, speaking on the sidelines of a meeting of the financial
chiefs from the Group of Seven leading nations. "Waiting till the
day or two before, or whenever the next deadline is, is just a way
of courting an accident."
He also said Greece needs to make tough decisions and that
Athens has to bring forward "a credible plan."
Mr. Lew's direct language came in contrast to meeting host
Germany, which sought to play down the role the Greek standoff had
at the gathering. German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble
acknowledged Greece and its creditors, which include Germany,
remained far from a deal.
"It was an issue, but we spent only a few minutes on it," Mr.
Schäuble said of Greece in concluding comments Friday. "The
positive news coming out of Athens doesn't fully reflect the state
of talks of the Greek government with the three institutions."
The three-day gathering of finance ministers and central bank
governors had other issues on the agenda: making the global economy
more dynamic; assessing the risks stemming from loose monetary
policy; closing remaining gaps in financial market regulation; and
achieving closer international cooperation in tax matters.
But it was clear in officials' public comments and sideline
conversations that the most urgent matter in global finance was the
bailout talks between the Greek government and its international
creditors--the European Union, the European Central Bank, and the
International Monetary Fund.
Greece is under pressure to strike a deal as it is due to repay
a EUR300 million ($329.2 million) loan to the IMF due June 5 and
three further payments to the fund later that month totaling about
EUR1.25 billion.
Concern over Greece's ability to repay its loans, and the risk
of a possible, even accidental default, have rattled European stock
markets and pushed the euro lower earlier this week.
International Monetary Fund head Christine Lagarde added to
jitters in comments in a German newspaper interview in which she
wouldn't rule out a Greek exit. International lenders on Friday
insisted they weren't considering pushing Greece out of the
currency.
"There is no Grexit scenario," French Finance Minister Michel
Sapin told reporters, using the colloquial term for a Greek exit
from the eurozone.
The meeting of the Group of Seven finance
ministers--representing the U.S., U.K., Germany, France, Italy,
Canada, and Japan--came just over a week before the leaders of
those countries gather in southern Germany for their annual
meeting, known as the G-7.
At the meeting this week, finance ministers also discussed the
best ways to enable sustainable global economic growth. The U.S.'s
Mr. Lew urged more investment and consumption, in a veiled dig at
Germany's export-dependent economy, which U.S. officials often
criticize for its heavy trade imbalance.
"There is a broad view that countries need to take comprehensive
measures to boost economic growth," Mr. Lew said. "In my
conversations, I emphasized the need for more demand, particularly
in countries with large current account surpluses."
Andreas Kissler contributed to this article.
Write to Andrea Thomas at andrea.thomas@wsj.com