by Maria Spiliopoulou
ATHENS, Jan. 18 (Xinhua) -- Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras on Wednesday rejected the prospect of introducing additional austerity measures in exchange for the conclusion of the pending second review of Greece's third bailout.
Speaking before parliament, the Greek leader of the Syriza party repeated that Greece had so far met the targets set under the program, and was making progress, close to exiting the eight-year debt crisis.
He asked international creditors to also fulfill their commitments under the agreement reached in the summer of 2015.
"Greece will conclude the second review without legislating new austerity measures beyond 2018," Tsipras stressed.
Greece's third bailout ends in 2018, according to the agreement, but the bailout review has been hit by significant delays as the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has still not fully got on board, citing concerns over the sustainability of the Greek debt load.
IMF officials are urging for further austerity and reform measures, in addition to debt relief, to ensure that Greece stays on the right fiscal course after 2018. Athens and European lenders object to the idea.
As a result, the second review, which was initially scheduled to have been concluded in 2016, is still pending. The Greek government wants its conclusion as soon as possible to ensure that Greece is included in the European Central Bank's bond buying program in the coming months.
