By Viktoria Dendrinou
BRUSSELS--Greece has five days to strike a deal with its
international creditors over a new bailout program before European
Union leaders convene in Brussels on July 12, European Council
President Donald Tusk said Tuesday.
Mr. Tusk, who presides over the leaders' summit said that the
end of this week is the final deadline for a deal between Greece
and its lenders on reforms the country must undertake in exchange
for sustained financial aid.
The inability to find an agreement by then "may lead to the
bankruptcy of Greece and the insolvency of its banking system," he
said, speaking at a press conference following a summit of eurozone
leaders in Brussels.
"I have no doubt, this is the most critical moment in our
history, EU and eurozone," he added.
His comments come after eurozone leaders were called to Brussels
urgently, following the results of a referendum called by Greek
Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras in which voters overwhelmingly
rejected demands by creditors on required cuts and economic
overhauls.
Failure to strike a deal could catapult Greece outside the
common currency, European officials have said.
"We have a Grexit scenario prepared in detail," said Jean-Claude
Juncker, the president of the European Commission, the EU's
executive arm.
Write to Viktoria Dendrinou at viktoria.dendrinou@wsj.com