Eurozone leaders will tell Greece today that time and patience are running out for its leftist-led government to implement agreed reforms to avert a looming cash crunch that could force it out of the single currency, The Economic Times reported today. Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has requested a meeting with the leaders of Germany, France and the main EU institutions on the sidelines of a European Union summit to press for Athens to be allowed to raise short-term funds to keep itself afloat. German Chancellor Angela Merkel delivered the same message in a speech to parliament ahead of the Brussels talks and a crucial visit by Tsipras to Berlin next Monday, saying that the crisis would only be overcome if Greece stuck to agreements. No one should expect a solution at Thursday's late-night Brussels talks or from her meeting with Tsipras next week, at which she said they would have "time to talk to each other in detail and perhaps also to argue.” A political meeting of a small group of leaders could not and would not replace the formal agreement that Greece concluded on Feb. 20 with Eurogroup finance ministers. EU sources said that Greece had refused to provide any update on public finances or reform plans in a conference call of senior euro zone officials on Tuesday, and had denied EU, IMF and European Central Bank experts access to government buildings in Athens, insisting that all meetings take place in a hotel.
