Finland Becomes Obstacle in Path of New Greek Bailout

 　　Finland has thrown an obstacle in the path of Greece's new $158 billion international bailout, demanding that it get collateral¹ from Athens to secure its investment in the deal.

　　Barely a month ago, the 17 nations that use the common euro currency agreed to Greece's second round of financial assistance in two years to help the debt-laden nation overcome its financial woes². But "bailout fatigue³" has since consumed some northern European nations, where opposition⁴ has grown against more financial assistance for Greece or new help for countries with huge debts, such as Italy and Spain.

　　Nowhere is that opposition more pronounced than in Finland.  The Helsinki government is trying to reach a collateral agreement with Greece under which Athens would post cash in accounts that would cover at least part of the $2 billion Finnish share of the bailout.  Greece would get the money back if it repays the bailout, plus income from the interest on the account.

　　The concept of a bilateral⁵ collateral agreement between Finland and Greece has drawn⁶ the ire of other European countries.  They want the 17 nations to complete the deal in unison⁷, to show common support for the euro, and say that Finland should not be able to negotiate separate, preferable terms.

　　European officials said Tuesday they are making progress on working out an agreement to complete the Greek bailout, but may not be able to complete a pact⁸ until their finance ministers meet in mid-September.

　　In Finland, the True Finn party, which is opposed to further help for Greece without a collateral agreement, surged in spring elections.  Opposition to more Greek assistance has also risen in Germany, the Netherlands, Slovakia and Austria.

　　Meanwhile, a new report shows confidence in the European economic outlook is waning⁹.  The European Commission survey of executive and consumer sentiment fell in August at the fastest rate since December 2008, at the outset of the global economic downturn.

　　European economic growth has slowed in recent months as several governments have embarked¹⁰ on austerity spending programs to trim their deficits¹¹.

1 collateral   

adj.平行的；旁系的；n.担保品

参考例句：

• Many people use personal assets as collateral for small business loans.很多人把个人财产用作小额商业贷款的抵押品。
• Most people here cannot borrow from banks because they lack collateral.由于拿不出东西作为抵押，这里大部分人无法从银行贷款。

2 woes   

困境( woe的名词复数 )； 悲伤； 我好苦哇； 某人就要倒霉

参考例句：

• Thanks for listening to my woes. 谢谢您听我诉说不幸的遭遇。
• She has cried the blues about its financial woes. 对于经济的困难她叫苦不迭。

3 fatigue   

n.疲劳，劳累

参考例句：

• The old lady can't bear the fatigue of a long journey.这位老妇人不能忍受长途旅行的疲劳。
• I have got over my weakness and fatigue.我已从虚弱和疲劳中恢复过来了。

4 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

5 bilateral   

adj.双方的，两边的，两侧的

参考例句：

• They have been negotiating a bilateral trade deal.他们一直在商谈一项双边贸易协定。
• There was a wide gap between the views of the two statesmen on the bilateral cooperation.对双方合作的问题，两位政治家各自所持的看法差距甚大。

6 drawn   

v.拖，拉，拔出；adj.憔悴的，紧张的

参考例句：

• All the characters in the story are drawn from life.故事中的所有人物都取材于生活。
• Her gaze was drawn irresistibly to the scene outside.她的目光禁不住被外面的风景所吸引。

7 unison   

n.步调一致，行动一致

参考例句：

• The governments acted in unison to combat terrorism.这些国家的政府一致行动对付恐怖主义。
• My feelings are in unison with yours.我的感情与你的感情是一致的。

8 pact   

n.合同，条约，公约，协定

参考例句：

• The two opposition parties made an electoral pact.那两个反对党订了一个有关选举的协定。
• The trade pact between those two countries came to an end.那两国的通商协定宣告结束。

9 waning   

adj.（月亮）渐亏的，逐渐减弱或变小的n.月亏v.衰落( wane的现在分词 )；（月）亏；变小；变暗淡

参考例句：

• Her enthusiasm for the whole idea was waning rapidly. 她对整个想法的热情迅速冷淡了下来。
• The day is waning and the road is ending. 日暮途穷。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

10 embarked   

乘船( embark的过去式和过去分词 )； 装载； 从事

参考例句：

• We stood on the pier and watched as they embarked. 我们站在突码头上目送他们登船。
• She embarked on a discourse about the town's origins. 她开始讲本市的起源。

11 deficits   

n.不足额( deficit的名词复数 )；赤字；亏空；亏损

参考例句：

• The Ministry of Finance consistently overestimated its budget deficits. 财政部一贯高估预算赤字。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Many of the world's farmers are also incurring economic deficits. 世界上许多农民还在遭受经济上的亏损。 来自辞典例句