An agreement among Greece's creditors on how to reduce its large debt pile should be "rooted in reality and not in wishful thinking", International Monetary Fund managing director Christine Lagarde said as she heads into a tense meeting with European leaders.

Ms Lagarde cancelled the last leg of a visit to Asia, skipping a southeast Asian summit in Cambodia, to return to Brussels for a meeting tomorrow of the euro group on Greece. As she left the Philippines, Ms Lagarde said she would push for a permanent solution to Greece's debts to avoid prolonged uncertainty and further damage to the Greek economy. To Ms Lagarde, that means countries in the euro zone should send a strong signal that they remain committed to Greece by agreeing to reduce the debt Athens owes them. Anti-IMF-loan protesters in Manila, pictured above, demonstrated against Ms Lagarde's visit to the Philippines.