Greek parliament approves $95 billion bailout deal

(Image credit: The Associated Press)

published 14 August 2015

Early Friday, after a contentious all-night session, Greece's parliament approved an €85 billion ($95 billion) bailout deal with the country's main creditors, the euro zone and and the International Monetary Fund. The final vote was 222 yes, 64 no, 11 abstentions, and 3 absent. During the debate, Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras called the austerity-forcing deal a "necessary choice" that would hand Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos the tools he needed to get euro zone approval at Friday's meeting of European finance ministers.

Tsipras had to rely on opposition members to pass the deal, overcoming a rebellion in his own Syriza party— 32 of the no votes and all 11 abstentions were from Syriza members. Parliament Speaker Zoe Konstantopoulou, a Syriza hardliner, forced the all-night session by raising a long string of procedural hurdles.

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.