Greece close to €31bn bailout deal - by Heather Stewart

The Greek PM, Antonis Samaras, said he was confident Greece was doing everything it had to in order to get a deal.

Greece has reached an agreement on "most of the core measures" to secure the release of the next €31bn tranche of its bailout as Europe's leaders prepared for a crucial two-day summit.

A statement from the troika of the European Commission, European Central Bank and International Monetary Fund said it had left Athens after "comprehensive and productive discussion" agreeing the broad outlines of the austerity measures Greece will be forced to impose in exchange for the latest payout.

Speaking in Bucharest at a meeting of right-of-centre leaders from across Europe, Greece's prime minister Antonis Samaras said: "I'm confident we're doing everything we have to do in order to get [a deal] and get it soon, so that we can move towards a recovery."

The details are expected to be finalised next week and any new commitments Samaras makes will be scrutinised by the electorate, which voted him into power earlier this year on the promise of exacting more lenient conditions from the troika.

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