Greek talks end in stalemate but add a bit of excitement

Meetings of European finance ministers are usually as exciting as a double physics class held on Lough Derg during a penance weekend.

But the new Syriza-led Greek government changed all that at the meeting of euro zone finance ministers in Brussels yesterday.

Six-hours of talks produced only stalemate and broke up in disarray, according to the report from our Brussels correspondent Suzanne Lynch and economics editor Arthur Beesley.

The biggest sticking point was whether Greece should seek an extension to its existing bailout programme which runs out at the end of February.

As we reported, the meeting came close to a joint statement but this was shelved at the last moment after flamboyant Greek finance minister Yanis Varoufakis objected. He was in contact with his prime minister Alexis Tspiras who is believed to have blocked any concessions.

Today FMs Gavan Reilly used a phrase, aptly, from Frozen: “For the first time in forever, a meeting of euro zone finance ministers has ended without even formulaic ‘conclusions’.”

There are high stakes here.

Greece is pursuing a strategy advocated by the anti-austerity cohort in Ireland from Fintan O’Toole to Sinn Féin to fringe left-wing parties.

Sinn Féin in particular has strongly hitched its wagon to Syriza and also to Podemos, perhaps seeing a vehicle for popular support that could ease Gerry Adams into Merrion Street.

Our London Editor Mark Hennessy has a fascinating report on this very topic today.

Syriza is now linking itself to Sinn Féin whose Waterford senator David Cullinane told the London meeting: “We have to be prepared to want to go into government, to lead an anti-austerity government in the south.

There are people on the left who won’t be part of that, but we are certainly organising.” A high-risk, high-reward strategy.