July 6, 2015
Statement by Minister Aso on Greece
The report on the result of the Greek referendum on July 5 shows that the votes against the latest reform agenda exceed those in favor.
With regard to the situation in Greece, the Japanese government has been in close contact with the foreign authorities throughout this weekend, and acknowledges that the Euro area countries now wait for the reactions of the Greek authorities and call on them to react responsibly. As indicated in their statement on June 27, the Euro area Finance Ministers state that they, with the European Central Bank, will make full use of the instruments available to safeguard the stability of the Eurozone. The Euro area is equipped with financial safety-net, including the European Stability Mechanism (ESM) which has maximum financial assistance capacity of 500 billion Euros.
Although direct economic and financial linkages between Japan and Greece are limited, the Japanese government and the Bank of Japan remain fully prepared to deal with possible developments in Greece. In this respect, the Japanese government and the Bank of Japan convened a meeting this morning, and will continue to work in close cooperation and carefully monitor market developments.