Greece’s finance minister is under fire this week as he tries to smooth domestic concern over new austerity measures while also producing a draft budget for 2012 that looks credible to international lenders.

希腊财长本周处境十分被动。他一面需要安抚国内对于新一轮紧缩措施的担忧，一面又要拿出在国际债权人看来可信的2012年预算草案。

Evangelos Venizelos went on the offensive on Sunday after local media reported details of last week’s breakdown in talks with the troika – experts from the European Union, the International Monetary Fund and the European Central Bank – amid disagreement over €5.7bn of extra spending cuts and revenue increases in 2011-2012.

当地媒体报道希腊与欧盟(EU)、国际货币基金组织(IMF)和欧洲央行(ECB)三方的专家上周谈判破裂的细节后，希腊财长埃万耶洛斯•韦尼泽洛斯(Evangelos Venizelos)周日主动出击。各方对2011-12年度57亿欧元的额外支出削减和财政收入增加计划存在分歧。

But Mr Venizelos’s warning against “scaremongering” could backfire with markets already spooked by the troika’s walkout, which sent yields on Greek bonds to fresh highs on Friday.

不过，鉴于市场已经因为欧盟、IMF和ECB放弃谈判、导致希腊国债收益率在上周五达到新高而成惊弓之鸟，韦尼泽洛斯反对“散布恐慌”的警告可能会产生负面后果。

Greece is due to raise €1bn in six-month treasury bills on Tuesday at an auction seen as a test of local banks’ stability amid a worsening liquidity squeeze.

希腊定于周二发行半年期国库券筹集10亿欧元，此次发债被视为流动性短缺日益恶化的情况下，对当地银行稳定性的一个考验。

Several state-controlled Greek banks have still not declared their participation in a €135bn debt swap and rollover for private bondholders included in the country’s second EU/IMF bail-out.

若干家政府控制的希腊银行尚未宣布参与面向私人部门债券持有人的1350亿欧元债券互换和展期方案。这一方案是希腊第二轮欧盟/IMF纾困的一部分。

The government has warned that if fewer than 90 per cent of bondholders decide to participate, the debt swaps may be cancelled altogether.

希腊政府警告，如果决定参与该计划的债券持有人不足90%，债务互换方案可能会完全取消。

Yet private Athens banks have already accepted haircuts ranging between 14 per cent and 21 per cent on bonds maturing by 2020 that would be included in the swap programme.

不过雅典的私营银行对包含在债务互换计划中的2020年到期的债券，已经接受了14%到21%不等的扣减。

Some analysts speculated on Sunday that Mr Venizelos had forced the 10-day suspension of talks with the troika so that Greece could appear to be taking a tough stance with its creditors.

一些分析人士周日揣测，韦尼泽洛斯强行将与欧盟、IMF和ECB三方的会谈暂停10天，从而显示希腊对债权人摆出了强硬姿态。

Government officials fear that violent protests similar to those staged in Athens in July might erupt when George Papandreou, the prime minister, gives a key economic policy speech this week in the northern city of Thessaloniki.

政府官员担忧，希腊总理乔治•帕潘德里欧(George Papandreou)本周在北部城市塞萨洛尼基(Thessaloniki)就经济政策发表重要讲话时，可能会爆发与今年7月雅典的情景相似的暴力示威。

Popular discontent is running high, with another round of one-off tax demands looming as the economy moves deeper into recession.

由于经济更深地陷入衰退，新一轮一次性增税措施迫近，民众的不满情绪十分高涨。

Opinion polls published on Sunday showed the opposition conservatives leading the governing Socialists by between 0.6 and 5.1 percentage points.

周日发布的民调数据显示，希腊反对党保守党的支持率比执政的社会党高出0.6至5.1个百分点。

The premier appeared to rule out an early election, telling a party gathering on Saturday that “voters will judge us in 2013”, that is, at the end of the Socialists’ parliamentary term.

希腊总理似乎排除了提前大选的可能性，他在周六举行的一次党内会议上表示，“选民将在2013年对我们做出评判”，2013年是社会党本届议会届满之时。

Yet even if Mr Venizelos can avoid further austerity measures this year, he will still have to implement structural reforms, including public sector job cuts, as a condition for Greece’s second rescue package.

然而即使韦尼泽洛斯能够在今年避免采取进一步的紧缩措施，作为希腊第二轮纾困计划的条件，他也仍然需要实施结构性改革，包括削减公共部门工作岗位。