Neelie Kroes’ comments on an eventual Greek departure from the eurozone in the Volkskrant newspaper were wrongly interpreted, according to an EU commission spokeswoman on Wednesday.

In the interview, which the commissioner approved, Kroes said if Greece eventually left the eurozone, it would not lead to a collapse of monetary union.
The commissioner is not a supporter of Greece exchanging the euro for the drachma, but says: ‘It is absolutely not a case of man overboard if someone leaves the eurozone’, the Volkskrant reported.
On Wednesday, the spokeswoman said Kroes had made her support for the Commission’s position on Greece clear during the organisation’s weekly meeting. This means Greece will remain in the eurozone, the paper said.
Support
The Volkskrant interview led commentators and MPs to ask if Kroes was indirectly upping the pressure on Greece to carry out reforms or if her comments were part of a wider strategy.
The comments were supported by both prime minister Mark Rutte and finance minister Jan Kees de Jager. Both said that enough measures had now been put in place to prevent the rest of Europe being ‘contaminated’ if Greece should leave.
However, Kroes said using the microblogging service Twitter on Wednesday: ‘let’s be clear. Volkskrant did not misinterpret me, others who didn’t read full interview may have. Important distinction.’
Kroes was replying to a query from British journalist Bruno Waterfield who asked what the misinterpretation actually was.