Greece will not cost the Netherlands any more money: prime minister

Any new agreement between the European Union and Greece will not cost the Netherlands more money, Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte told parliament on Wednesday.

No one should be afraid this might happen, given the boundaries of the on-going debate with the Greeks, Rutte told MPs.

The prime minister chose his words carefully so as not to ‘inflame the situation’, the Financieele Dagblad reports. ‘Answers to “what if” questions and headlines in the international media are no help,’ the prime minister said.

Parliament was debating the negotiations with the new Greek government ahead of Wednesday night’s meeting of European finance ministers. European leaders will meet on Thursday and Friday to discuss the situation.

Rutte told MPs that the Dutch standpoint is that ‘a deal is a deal’. Greece must deliver the results as promised in the current rescue programme in terms the government’s finances, economic reforms and ensuring a healthy financial sector, the prime minister said.