Bailout Talks Begin

Portugal began talks with international authorities on Monday about the details regarding its bailout. Officials from the IMF held a meeting with Portugal's Financial Minister, Fernando Teixeira dos Santos in Lisbon on Monday. According to BBC News, the yields on benchmark government bonds are the highest since its introduction in 1999.

Officials say terms of the deal would be agreed upon by mid-May. They plan to have the talks finished by June because the election is set to take place in June. They hope to have the details worked out so the new government in power is able to focus on the bailout details. The Portuguese elections are not the only elections that matter during this time.

Currently Finland is having their elections and the Portuguese fate could depend on that. The True Finn Party has openly stated that they are anti-euro union and oppose the suggested bailout for Portugal. The significance of these elections is great. For the bailout to pass there must be an unanimous decision between the European countries. They would the decision by its countries to gain access to the 440 billion Euros to use for the bailout.

Back to Portugal, BBC's reporter Allison Roberts is in Lisbon covering the meeting. She stated that the opposition to the nation's ex-lead party has agreed and will back the decision for a bailout. She says its not the government that is not vocal, its the public (workers and citizens). They have become more vocal about their home country's situation simply because jobs have been lost and debts keep piling up.

I believe that the bailout deal needs to happen as soon as possible for the country to stay on its feet. The circumstances in which the bailout would cover are starting to get worse. Public unrest is starting to rise and if the government doesn't put the public's interest first, it might get worse.

I had no idea that the Finnish elections would have such an impact on Portugal's fate. I had no idea that without an unanimous decision it couldn't happen. What I would like to know is if they don't agree, what would happen next. I knew that Finland can be pretty cold but not cold hearted.

Bailout Talks Begin

The Portuguese Baliout

A monumental push towards Portugal's bailout took place on Wednesday. Opposition parties in Portugal offered its support of the European Union bailout. They will offer any support necessary so that the government receives the bailout it is asking for.

"Conscious of the seriousness of the situation, the PSD will not hesitate in offering all the help it can so that the programme for assistance can be met," PSD leader Pedro Passos Coelho told reporters after meeting caretaker Prime Minister Jose Socrates.

According to HeraldScotland.com, the full details of the bailout should be disclosed by mid-May so the new government has guidelines to work with. Reuters reported that nationalism by all parties is necessary for the bailout to work. Elections for the new government take place on June 5, and the new "lead" party must be met with new austerity measures and follow the strict limitations of the loan details. It seems as though support from other parties has been taking place.

With multi-party support of the bailout there are still a few people or parties that don't agree with it. The Left Bloc and the Communist Party are the two parties that oppose the European Union bailout. "We insist that the decision of the Portuguese (at the election) is not a plebiscite to surrender to a solution which implies the destruction of the Portuguese economy," said Francisco Louca, head of the small Left Bloc party.

I believe that all the parties involved must put their political differences aside to do what is best for the country and not for themselves. There must be a cross-party agreement so that the transition from debt to non-debt is quick and painless.

Portugal's International Coverage

Portugal does have international coverage and doesn't just focus on it's internal affairs.  I was able to find an online newspaper that does cover international news in depth.  The name of the newspaper is Diario de Noticias and covers both international and national news.  For television, RTP usually covers the international news with a program specialized for it.

The previous website I mentioned contained stories from all over the world, including Libya, Ivory Coast, and Japan.  I asked my grandmother about the coverage RTP gives and she said that RTP gives about 45 minutes dedicated to international news. 

Overall, they seem to be very informed about news that happens globally and not just locally.  With news about the bailout, I believe that Portugal will have to be aware of what happens in other countries in response to Portugal's request for the bailout.  Also, I believe that Portual will have to inform the European Union about the details of the bailout.  The European nations are going to want to know how its going to effect not only Portual but their countries as well.  Their national news that is broadcasted out to other countries such as Spain, is going to have to be very detailed.

Here are some links to which you can view the news and link to RTP.  If you would like to view the pages in English simply right click and hit translate..this is for PC's I'm not too sure about Macs.

RTP International
Diario de Noticias

Portugal Asks For Bailout

Portugal asked the European Union on Wednesday for an emergency bailout.  Portual's Prime Minister, Jose Socrates, asked the European Union after recognizing that borrowing costs had become unsustainable.  "I had always considered outside as as a last recourse scenario, he said. 

But the time has come to seek outside help for a country who is experiencing an all time high in debt and unemployment.  According to the New York Times, its likely that it contracts 1.3 percent this year, this is also according to the Bank of Portugal

The bailout would help Portugal rebound from debt, unemployment, and civilian unrest.  The baliout would have to be about 75 billion euros ($106.7 billion US dollars).  According the the New York Times, the yields on Portuguese government debt are its highest since the introduction of the euro to the country.  Mr. Socrates stated, " This is a particularly serious situation for our country."

The request will be processed in normal procedure and no special actions will be taken to speed up the process.  This event is so sudden that it even suprised the European officials that are currently meeting in Brussels.  The Finance Minister, Fernando Teixeira, said, "In this difficult situation, which could have been avoided, I understand that it is necessary to resort to the financing mechanisms available within the European framework."

If the bailout were to be processed and accepted Portual would join Greece and Ireland as the only European countries to have been bailed out.  Portual has the weakest and smallest economies in the 17-nation union. 

You can't really blame Mr. Socrates, who ironically resigned on March 23, for asking the European Union for help.  He has been in office with almost no support from the citizens of his country and would not want to be portrayed as the scapegoat for its problems.  At least he is trying to fix things while he can.

A new government is set to be decided in June but until then the government is in a serious bind and limbo.  He lacks support from others within and outside the country because he has already resigned and no other party in Portual seems to know how to fix the problem.