Greece may seek financial help from the International Monetary Fund over the April 2-4 Easter weekend due to little hope for aid from the European Union.

A senior Greek official told Dow Jones Newswires that the prospect of help from the European Union "doesn't look good" and that IMF help would be a prominent scenario if EU help is not forthcoming.

Meanwhile Greece's Prime Minister George Papandreou warned on Thursday that Athens would not be able to make planned deficit cuts unless it can borrow money more cheaply and said he would prefer not to have to turn to the IMF for help.

"But if we keep borrowing at very high rates, and this is the challenge we have, we cannot sustain the deficit reduction that these hard measures aim to achieve," he told a committee in the European Parliament. "We should be able to borrow at rates that are normal."

"We have talked to the IMF, they would have asked us for nothing more. But I would prefer the European solution. I would prefer the European solution as part of the euro zone, as a European," he said.

"This is not to say...we are asking for money, but to have it on the table, some form of an estimate on the table. That alone, I believe, would be enough to make sure that the spreads, the speculators would be warned off."

Euro-zone member Greece is under intense pressure from the EU and financial markets to bring down its budget gap, which hit an estimated 12.7% of gross domestic product last year, four times above EU limits.

The Socialist government has pledged to cut that deficit to 8.7% of GDP this year, and below the EU's 3% limit by 2012.

Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Wednesday that she wants the eurozone to be able to exclude one of its members in future if that is necessary to avert a crisis.

A day earlier after talks in Brussels the EU finance ministers agreed how to help Greece in its battle to control its finances. They revealed few details, but ruled out any loan guarantees.

We need your support so Novinite.com can keep delivering news and information about Bulgaria! Thank you!