希腊总理因病不能参加欧盟峰会

Greece's new Prime Minister Antonis Samaras will miss this week's EU summit while he recovers from eye surgery, according to a government spokesman.

希腊政府发言人称，新总理安东尼斯·萨马拉斯因眼部手术，不能参加本周举行的欧盟峰会。

He underwent routine surgery on Saturday for a damaged retina（视网膜） , with the operation said to have been a success.

Mr Samaras was sworn in as prime minister only last Wednesday to head a three-party pro-austerity coalition.

The "troika（三头政治） " of rescue lenders have also postponed a planned visit to Athens due to Mr Samaras' poor health.

Inspectors from the EU, European Central Bank and IMF had been due to review Greece's progress in meeting bailout conditions on Monday.

The new date for the trip will be determined later in the week.

Negotiations

Greece is under huge international pressure to fulfil bailout terms.

The new governing coalition consists of two "pro-memorandum" parties who broadly support continuing the austerity and reforms demanded by Greece's lenders - Mr Samaras' centre-right New Democracy and the beleaguered socialist Pasok party - as well as the more sceptical Democratic Left.

The new government is seeking to water down（稀释） the requirements imposed on it by other EU countries and by the International Monetary Fund, including an extension to the deadline for it to reduce its budget deficit by at least two years, to 2016.

The Greek reform programme was expected to be a major item on the agenda of the two-day EU summit in Brussels that begins this Thursday.

A government spokesman said that Mr Samaras cannot attend because doctors have forbidden him from flying, and that the new foreign minister, Dimitris Avramopoulos, will go in his place.

To compound the government's difficulties, the new finance minister Vassilis Rapanos is in hospital after apparently fainting on Friday.

His condition was said on Saturday to be "stable and improving". He was originally due to be sworn in on Saturday.

The outgoing finance minister, Giorgos Zanias, will instead travel to the summit along with two deputy ministers.

Both politicians are expected to be discharged on Monday, but Mr Samaras is likely to be confined to his home for a week.

In a policy document, the government said its aim was for the fiscal target envisaged（设想，面对） by the bailout deal to be met without further cuts to salaries and pensions.

Elections held last week ended a two-month deadlock over its implementation.

Pro-bailout parties gained a narrow majority in parliament, despite widespread public anger at austerity measures stipulated in the bailout.