World Bank: Greek referendum plan is gamble for eurozone

Nov 1, 2011, 19:43 GMT

Washington - Greece's surprise plans to hold a referendum on the European debt bailout deal provokes a new round of uncertainty about resolution of the two-year eurozone crisis, the World Bank president said Tuesday.

'To me it looks like a roll of a dice,' said Robert Zoellick in a briefing with journalists. 'I just ... don't know how the question will be phrased.' The timing of the vote was also not clear, he noted.

Eurozone leaders were flabbergasted when Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou on Monday announced his intention to hold a referendum on the bailout agreement adopted last week by European leaders after months of wrangling.

Along with a renewed shakeout on bourses, the euro slumped and fresh pressure emerged on the government bond markets of heavily indebted euro states like Italy, which European leaders worry could be the next eurozone nation to fall victim to the debt crisis.

'For certain, it's going to add uncertainty to markets at a time when, I think, people had hoped that the eurozone deal and the actions to be taken would help to alleviate some of that uncertainty,' Zoellick said.

The announcement of referendums not only on the bailout package but also on Athens' austerity measures was 'evidence of some of the fundamental problems that have been plaguing Greece throughout the whole process,' Zoellick said.

The World Bank president said Papandreou's move also 'makes the hill steeper for the G20,' a reference to the summit of the world's 20 largest economies in Cannes, France, on Thursday and Friday.

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