ATHENS, Greece (AP) — New Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras will later Friday outline how his coalition government intends to deal with the country's massive financial crisis, as an inspection of Greece's public finances continues.
Samaras, whose conservatives got the most votes in June 17 general elections, will address parliament at 7:00 p.m. (1600 GMT), at the start of a three-day debate that will end in a vote of confidence in his three-party coalition, that has 179 seats in the 300-member assembly.
The government admitted Thursday that key elements of its painful economic adjustment program are off track, as meetings continue in Athens with inspectors from the European Union, European Central Bank and International Monetary Fund.
Greece is suffering through a fifth year of recession, with unemployment topping 22 percent, around double the eurozone average.
Senior ECB and IMF officials this week urged the new government to make up for delays in structural reforms and appeared unwilling to discuss a potential renegotiation of bailout terms — a central pledge of the government.
The left-wing main opposition Syriza party said it would press the government on whether it had abandoned its election campaign pledge during the confidence debate in parliament.