Greeks defy Europe with overwhelming referendum 'No'

"No" supporters celebrate the referendum results on a street in central in Athens. 61% of the voters in Greece have rejected the creditors bailout terms by voting 'No' in the referendum on the country's debt deal. [Photo/IC]

GREECE SAYS READY TO NEGOTIATE

Officials from the Greek government, which had argued that a 'No' vote would strengthen its hand to secure a better deal from international creditors after months of wrangling, immediately said they would try to restart talks with European partners.

But euro zone officials shot down any prospect of a quick resumption of talks, even though finance ministers were planning to meet during the week to discuss the fallout from the vote. German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Francois Hollande will meet in Paris on Monday afternoon.

"Tsipras and his government are leading the Greek people on a path of bitter abandonment and hopelessness," Germany's economy minister Sigmar Gabriel told the Tagesspiegel daily. He said negotiations with Athens now were "barely conceivable".

Foreign Minister Linas Linkevicius of Lithuania, which joined the euro zone at the start of the year, said on Twitter: "Difficult to help Greece against the will of people & Government which lives in parallel World."

Many of Athens' partners have warned over the past week that a 'No' vote would mean cutting bridges with Europe and driving Greece's crippled financial system into outright bankruptcy.

The result delivers a hammer blow to the European Union's grand single currency project. Intended to be permanent and unbreakable when it was created 15 years ago, the euro zone could now be on the point of losing its first member with the risk of further unravelling to come.

"I believe such a result can be used as a strong negotiating tool so that Europeans can understand that we are not a colony," said Nefeli Dimou, a 23-year-old student in Athens.