#Greece Default Watch. What Historic Greek German Tensions

#Greece Default Watch. Historic Greek German Tensions?

Greece Default Watch. With a definitive solution to the Greek Euro crisis expected on Monday (February 20th), it makes you wonder what the Germans really seek out of the deal. The Brits have been pretty diplomatic with their comments on Greece but the Germans are being seen to outright hostile.

The German position is extremely ironic in that the German banks and German companies have profited hugely in business dealings with loans to the Greeks over the years. Look how LIDL (headquartered in Germany) has a significant share of the supermarket sector in Greece currently. How much of LIDL's profit is repatriated to head office and not retained in Greece?

The issue of what Asians call "Giving Face" is pointedly taken up in this clip of the Greek president, Karolos Papoulias' reaction to recent comments by Germany's finance minister Wolfgang Schaueble.