Billions in aid for greece agreed

Others saw the chance for a new start for the heavily indebted eurozone: "the decision (…) is significant because it keeps greece in the euro and gives the country a rough chance to get out of the vicious circle of recession and over-indebtedness," stressed finance minister ioannis stournaras.

The leader of the second largest coalition party pasok, evangelos venizelos, spoke of a "new start that the country needs after nine months of waiting". Fotis kouvelis of the democratic left called the agreement a "decisive step for the country’s remaining in the euro".

Sharp criticism, however, came from opposition leader alexis tsipras of the radical left alliance (syriza). After a meeting with ambassadors from EU member states, he said: "the solution does not include a sustainable plan for greece, therefore it is not a solution."

The country’s major newspapers predominantly buried the agreement on their front pages. Only the tabloid "dimokratia" spoke of a "bloody tranche", while the "avgi", which is close to the radical left, headlined: "smoke candles instead of a solution".