French, German disagreement endangers Greek deal

BRUSSELS — A person familiar with the talks over a second massive bailout for Greece says disagreement between France and Germany is endangering a crucial deal expected for this weekend.

The person says that Germany is pushing for banks to accept cuts of 50 percent to 60 percent on the value of their Greek bonds.

He says France is insisting that leaders at their summit Sunday should only make technical revisions to a preliminary agreement reached with private investors in July.

That deal would lead to losses of some 21 percent on Greek bondholdings, much of that from cuts in interest rates and deferred payments.

The person was speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the negotiations.

Europe officials promised a “comprehensive solution” to the crisis at Sunday's summit.