The question is not whether Greece can reduce its deficits but whether it has the strongest possible support to do so, said the MEP, who heads the Greek socialist delegation and is a vice-president at the European Parliament.
Lambrinidis criticises the EU for refusing to disclose how it plans to support Greece if the country needs more money to lower its deficit, saying this will not deter markets from gambling on the country's demise.
On 11 February, EU member states met at an informal summit on the EU's 2020 strategy for growth and jobs, which was usurped by discussions on a rescue package for Greece.
Leaders appeared to reach "a clear message of solidarity to take determined and coordinated action if needed to safeguard stability in the euro area as a whole," according to a statement made after the meeting (EurActiv 11/02/10).
The MEP argues that the EU needs to send a clear signal to speculators to stay away from the country's sovereign bonds, even if no support is needed in the first instance.
Lambrinidis does not doubt his own country's ability to reduce the level of its deficit, currently the highest in the EU at 12.7%.
Since the summit, plans for a Greek bailout have been kept quiet, with both the European Commission and the German government denying reports of a 25 billion bailout for Greece leaked to Germany's Der Speigel magazine.
Greece has also gotten into trouble at the European Commission for using interest rate swaps to hide the true size of its deficit.
Eurostat confirmed that this practice was used by several other countries, including Portugal, Italy, Ireland and Spain, but at the time it was a legal method of raising capital.
Lambrinidis also condemns the EU's determination to single out Greece and asks why the Commission is not investigating other countries that were engaged in such swaps.
