Eurogroup meeting starts with mixed reactions to Tsipras' referendum call

Eurozone finance ministers have begun to gather Saturday for their fifth meeting in 10 days, hours after Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras surprisingly announcing a referendum on the latest creditors' proposal.

After returned to Athens from a summit in Brussels, Tsipras announced in a television address early Saturday that his government will put the creditors' proposal to a popular vote on July 5.

The dramatic referendum call has increased uncertainty to the talks between Greece and the creditors, hiking concerns over a possible Greek default and further Grexit.

Eurogroup President Jeroen Dijsselbloem said he was "negatively surprised" by the referendum call, calling it was a "sad decision" for Greece.

"It has closed the door on further talks," he said, adding the following meeting will talk about the future consequence.

Different from the Eurogroup chief's negative stance, Christine Lagarde, Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), stressed on her arrival that "works must go on."

"We want to restore the financial independence and the stability of the economy in Greece," she said, noting that achieving such purpose requires financial support and debt operation from European partners.

Without commenting on the referendum, the IMF chief vowed to continue work on the Greek debt issue.

"We have always worked along those lines and make those recommends and I am going to do that here again, and we'll continue to work," Lagarde said.

Greece was reported to apply at this meeting for a short extension of the ongoing aid program to give time to the referendum. Greece rejected on Friday a proposal by creditors for a five-month extension of its bailout accompanied by some 15 billion euros (about 16.8 billion U.S. dollars) in funding.

German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schauble said Greece ended the negotiations unilaterally and further negotiations over the issue failed.

"The offer is on the negotiating table and we are in the position that on Tuesday the program ends," he said, adding "None of my colleagues see any possibility for a deal now."

While Yanis Varoufakis, the Greek finance minister, looked pleased as he stepping into the meeting room in Brussels. He declined to say any words about the progress of the ongoing talks or the proposed referendum.

With only four days left to the June 30 deadline when the Greek bailout program expires and Athens needs to repay a 1.5 billion euro loan installment to the IMF, uncertainty whether a reforms for cash agreement would be finalized on time prevailed. (1 euro = 1.12 U.S. dollars) Endit