Greece swears in new cabinet on Thursday

Greece will swear in a new government on Thursday which will face the task of renegotiating tough bailout terms with foreign creditors, dpa reported. The daily Kathimerini newspaper said Greece will at a meeting of eurozone finance minister on Thursday ask for a two-year extension to reduce its public deficit to below 3 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP). Greek caretaker Finance Minister Giorgos Zannias will make the request at the meeting in Luxembourg. The extension until 2016 would require the European Union and International Monetary Fund (IMF) to provide an extra 16-20 billion euros (20-25 billion dollars) in loans, depending on how deep the country's recession will be. Greece's recession has been forecast at 4.5 per cent of GDP by the EU/IMF but it is now likely to reach between 6 and 7 per cent. The country ended its political impasse by swearing in conservative New Democracy leader Antonis Samaras on Wednesday to lead a pro-bailout coalition following an election at the weekend. Samaras was sworn in after talks with his two coalition partners, socialist PASOK leader Evangelos Venizelos and Fotis Kouvelis of the Democratic Left. Media reports said the new government would comprise of 15 ministers and approximately 20 deputy ministers, a substantial reduction from the 49 ministers and deputies that served in the interim cabinet under Lucas Papademos.