(MENAFN- The Peninsula) The United States and Japan pressed Greece and its European partners to resolve Athens' debt crisis and avoid rattling the eurozone and the global economy, as the issue dominated talks of the Group of Seven finance ministers on Friday.
Even though Greece was not on the official agenda of the three-day meeting in Dresden, it was a key topic as time runs out for Athens to reach a deal with its international creditors to unlock 7.2. billion euros ($7.9 billion) in bailout cash.
"All parties need to move," US Treasury Secretary Jack Lew told reporters after the meeting wrapped up.
Lew urged Greece to bring forward a "credible plan" and "take serious action."
But there also "needs to be some flexibility on the part of the institutions," namely the European Central Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the European Commission, Lew said.
The three lenders are demanding that the Greek government push through economic reforms in return for the last tranche of bailout funds.
"Greece needs to make very tough decisions," the US finance chief continued, but "one won't happen without the other."
"Everyone agrees that resolving this without crisis would be in the interest of everyone and the global economy," he said.
- No 'Grexit' scenario -
Representatives of the key actors in the Greek negotiations - IMF chief Christine Lagarde, ECB president Mario Draghi and the EU's commissioner for economic and monetary affairs Pierre Moscovic - all attended the Dresden talks, held to prepare for a wider summit of G7 leaders starting June 7.
Lagarde had caused a flurry the day before by saying in a newspaper interview that a so-called "Grexit" - or Greek exit from the eurozone - was "a potential."
But French Finance Minister Michel Sapin insisted: "There is no Grexit scenario."
There had been "progress" in the negotiations, but "results are still insufficient so far," Sapin said.
The meeting's host, German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schaeuble, also sought to play down assertions by Athens that Greece is on the verge of reaching a deal with its creditors.
"The positive reports out of Athens don't fully reflect the state of talks," Schaeuble said.
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