ATHENS (Reuters) - Political leaders in Greece have agreed on most of the austerity measures demanded by its creditors and are now eyeing pension and wage cuts to find the final 1.5 billion euros of savings still needed, a source close to the talks said on Sunday. 
 
 Greece must find savings worth 11.5 billion euros for 2013 and 2014 to satisfy its increasingly impatient lenders, who are currently visiting Athens to evaluate the country's progress in complying with the terms of its latest bailout. 
 
 A finance ministry source said the lenders, who were due to leave Athens at the end of July, would now stay until the savings plan was nailed down. 
 
 "We want to help and we will stay as long as it takes and until the plan is finalized," IMF mission chief Poul Thomsen has told the Greek finance minister, according to a Greek official. 
 
 Prime Minister Antonis Samaras's government last week managed to draw up a list of measures to achieve those savings, but the three parties in his conservative-led administration failed to agree on them, and are due to resume talks on Monday. 
 
 "The political leaders don't disagree on anything, there are just alternative proposals being discussed to protect those with low pensions or incomes in the public sector," said the source, who is involved in the talks. "We need measures worth 1.5 billion euros to finalize the 11.5 billion euro package." 
 
 Near-bankrupt Greece is fighting an increasingly desperate battle to convince skeptical European Union and International Monetary Fund lenders it has turned over a new leaf and is ready to push through long-delayed reforms to overhaul its recession-hit economy. 
 
 But the lenders have so far appeared far from convinced, and officials have told Reuters Greece is likely to require a new debt restructuring that the euro zone - faced with market turmoil in Italy and Spain as well - can ill afford. 
 
 Greek media have reported that the country's leaders are discussing possible layoffs of contractors in the public sector, a cap on pensions, cuts in welfare benefits, reductions in tax exemptions, and lower salaries for public employees as well as raising the retirement age by a year to make up the shortfall in savings. 
 
 PRESSURE ON CASH RESERVES 
 
 A decision on a new tranche of aid for Greece is not expected until September, and the country's already dire financial position appears to be getting increasingly precarious. 
 
 "The fact that we have not received the agreed aid installments has put pressure on our cash reserves. Until then, we are taking extra care in managing our cash," Deputy Finance Minister Christos Staikouras told Real News weekly. 
 
 The troika of EU, European Central Bank and IMF lenders, whose departure date is now uncertain, is due to return in September to complete its assessment of whether Greece deserves more aid. 
 
 A fifth year of recession, record unemployment, and repeated waves of austerity cuts have fuelled growing anger towards the troika and the austerity medicine it has insisted on. 
 
 Summing up the dark public mood, the GSEE union lambasted the troika after talks with it on Friday for heaping misery on Greeks. 
 
 "We agreed on one thing - that we disagree on everything," GSEE leader Yannis Panagopoulos said in a statement. "The troika men came to Greece as doctors and prescribed the medicine that would save the Greek economy and people, but in the end they proved to be charlatans." 
 
 (Writing by Deepa Babington; Editing by Tim Pearce) ||||| Greece missed its $1.7 billion debt repayment to the International Monetary Fund, becoming the first developed country to default. Here's a look at some of the fallout. (Jorge Ribas/The Washington Post) 
 
 Greece missed its $1.7 billion debt repayment to the International Monetary Fund, becoming the first developed country to default. Here's a look at some of the fallout. (Jorge Ribas/The Washington Post) 
 
 European officials on Wednesday slammed the door on any further negotiations with Greece before a national referendum planned for Sunday, daring the Athens government to go ahead with a vote that holds peril for the country no matter which option Greeks choose. 
 
 “There will be no talks in the coming days,” Eurogroup President Jeroen Dijsselbloem told reporters Wednesday evening. “We will simply await now the outcome of the referendum on Sunday.” 
 
 The hard-line European stance came on a day when Greek authorities had seemed to waver in their determination to proceed with the vote, and it appears to reflect an emerging European view that Athens is in a no-win situation. 
 
 Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras announced the referendum last weekend to give Greek voters a chance to weigh in on the spending cuts that Europe has demanded as a condition of financial rescue. But the exact stakes in the vote have been unclear since Greece’s old bailout program expired Tuesday, making the country the first developed nation to miss an International Monetary Fund repayment deadline. 
 
 The government has urged a “no” vote, a choice that European officials say would trigger Greece’s exit from the euro zone. A “yes” vote could cause Tsipras’s government to collapse. 
 
 1 of 70 Full Screen Autoplay Close Skip Ad × Greeks flood ATMs after banks close as crisis deepens View Photos Shuttered banks and a closed stock market are causing many to panic and purchase more gas and goods. Greece likely will find out this week whether it will be able to hold on to the euro. Caption The Greek Parliament backed down in its confrontation with the country’s creditors. July 13, 2015 People stand in line to use a bank ATM as a person begs for alms in Athens. Thanassis Stavrakis/AP Buy Photo Wait 1 second to continue. 
 
 After insisting for days that Europe’s offer was intolerable, Tsipras sent a letter late Tuesday night to Greece’s main creditors in which he appeared to open a space for significant concessions in the cash-for-cutbacks standoff, suggesting he could agree to the stringent austerity measures he once repudiated. 
 
 His letter proposed some changes to European Union demands but left in place many of the bloc’s most far-reaching terms, including fundamental reforms of the way Greece’s economy is organized. 
 
 [Greece’s financial meltdown explained] 
 
 With Greece now cut off from its financial lifelines, Tsipras’s proposal also reiterated a request for a new $32 billion bailout and more relief from Greece’s crushing debts than E.U. leaders have been prepared to offer. 
 
 “Our amendments are concrete and they fully respect the robustness and credibility of the design of the overall program,” Tsipras wrote in the letter, which was addressed to the heads of the E.U. executive arm, the European Central Bank and the IMF. 
 
 Revived hope of a deal sent European stock markets higher after two days of downturns. Wall Street also rose. 
 
 Yet the prospect of a breakthrough was almost immediately quashed by Greece’s main creditors, including economic powerhouse Germany, even as Washington continued to press for both sides to reach a compromise. 
 
 Greeks woke up to shuttered banks and closed ATMs on Monday, as a breakdown in talks between Athens and its creditors pushed the country to the brink. (Reuters) 
 
 German Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble said the latest Greek letter “did not provide further clarity” in the impasse and was “no basis” for resuming serious negotiations before the referendum. He went on to blast Tsipras’s government for dragging the country deeper into crisis since coming to power in January with a promise to fight further E.U.-imposed financial pressures. 
 
 “Greece is in a difficult situation, but purely because of the behavior of the Greek government,” Schäuble said in a speech in the German Parliament’s lower house. “Seeking the blame outside Greece might be helpful in Greece, but it has nothing to do with reality.” 
 
 [It could get worse] 
 
 Also in Berlin, German Chancellor Angela Merkel gave no ground. She told German lawmakers that there can be no direct discussions on a new aid program until after the referendum. 
 
 “We will wait,” she said, adding that any new bailout would have to be approved by Germany’s Parliament. 
 
 French President François Hollande sounded more conciliatory, perhaps to satisfy those in the left wing of his Socialist Party who are sympathetic to Tsipras. 
 
 “If we have to wait for a referendum, there is always a risk . . . that we would enter a period of turmoil and enter into the unknown,” he said. “It’s better to be sure than to leap into the void.” 
 
 Other European officials, however, signaled that they were in no mood to talk unless Tsipras completely capitulated. 
 
 With Europe’s verdict clear, Tsipras appeared on Greek television Wednesday afternoon vowing to stick with plans for the referendum and once again assailing the E.U. demands, which include raising taxes and further trimming pensions. 
 
 Greece, he said, will be back at the negotiating table after the referendum, seeking “better terms for the Greek people.” 
 
 The fast-moving gambits and declarations across Europe added to the high-stakes atmosphere as Greece tumbled toward the Sunday vote. Tsipras and his allies in the radical leftist Syriza party cast it as a simple up-or-down choice focused on Europe’s bailout proposals. But E.U. leaders have framed it in starker terms: as a judgment on whether Greece wants to remain in the euro currency community or risk being the first country to crash out of it. Polls suggest the vote could go either way. 
 
 The situation was further clouded Wednesday by questions about the referendum’s framework from Thorbjorn Jagland, head of the Council of Europe, an advisory body that monitors elections and human rights. 
 
 Jagland told the Associated Press that the planned vote did not meet international standards. Its defects included the lack of two weeks’ notice, he said. The Council of Europe has no enforcement powers, but the observations could boost critics of the planned vote, including Greek opposition leaders. 
 
 Meanwhile, Greece’s banking system continued to teeter on the brink of collapse. 
 
 The European Central Bank, which controls a vital stream of emergency cash to Greece’s banks, opted Wednesday to keep the banks in limbo — neither slashing support nor increasing it. The decision means the banks’ fate will be determined only after the referendum. 
 
 Greece’s banks have been closed to preserve their dwindling cash reserves, and Greeks have been limited to withdrawing 60 euros, or about $67, per day from ATMs. The cash shortage has caused pain and panic as pensioners go without money for their doctors’ bills and citizens try to stock up on basic grocery supplies. 
 
 Greek banks are so low on cash that they could run out by Monday, two Greek officials with knowledge of the situation said. 
 
 With the country facing such dire prospects, Pope Francis asked Catholics to pray for the Greek people amid their “keenly felt human and social crisis.” 
 
 Anthony Faiola in Berlin and Brian Murphy in Washington contributed to this report. 
 
 Europe may not admit it, but its future is on the line in Greece 
 
 MAP: Greece isn’t the first nation to default on a sovereign debt 
 
 The forgotten origins of Greece’s crisis will make you think twice about who’s to blame 
 
 Today’s coverage from Post correspondents around the world ||||| ATHENS, Greece (AP) — Greek lawmakers voted overwhelmingly early Thursday to approve a harsh austerity bill demanded by bailout creditors, despite significant dissent from members of Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras' left-wing party. 
 
 Greece's Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras delivers a speech during a parliament meeting in Athens, Thursday, July 16, 2015. Greece's Parliament has approved an austerity bill demanded by bailout creditors,... (Associated Press) 
 
 Greece's Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras delivers a speech during a parliament meeting in Athens, Thursday, July 16, 2015. Greece's Parliament has approved an austerity bill demanded by bailout creditors,... (Associated Press) 
 
 Anti-austerity protesters clash with riot police during a rally in Athens, Wednesday, July 15, 2015. Greece has a tentative rescue deal, but relief that it is not falling out of the euro is unlikely... (Associated Press) 
 
 Members of the Communist-affiliated PAME labor union march during an anti-austerity rally in Athens, Wednesday, July 15, 2015. Greece has a tentative rescue deal, but relief that it is not falling out... (Associated Press) 
 
 Members of the Communist-affiliated PAME labor union shout slogans during an anti-austerity rally in Athens, Wednesday, July 15, 2015. Greece has a tentative rescue deal, but relief that it is not falling... (Associated Press) 
 
 Members of the Communist-affiliated PAME labor union hold a banner reading ''Memorandum'' during an anti-austerity rally at Omonia square in Athens, Wednesday, July 15, 2015. Greece has a tentative rescue... (Associated Press) 
 
 Members of the Communist-affiliated PAME labor union gather during an anti-austerity rally at Omonia square in Athens, Wednesday, July 15, 2015. Greece has a tentative rescue deal, but relief that it... (Associated Press) 
 
 Greece's Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, arrives for a meeting with lawmakers of Syriza governing party as Parliament speaker Zoi Konstantopoulou applauds him in Athens, Wednesday, July 15, 2015. Tsipras... (Associated Press) 
 
 Riot police try to avoid petrol bombs during clashes in Athens, Wednesday, July 15, 2015. Greece has a tentative rescue deal, but relief that it is not falling out of the euro is unlikely to last long:... (Associated Press) 
 
 Greece's Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras votes during a parliament meeting in Athens, Thursday, July 16, 2015. Greece's Parliament has approved an austerity bill demanded by bailout creditors, despite a... (Associated Press) 
 
 Greece's Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras attends a meeting with lawmakers of Syriza governing party at the Greek Parliament in Athens, Wednesday, July 15, 2015. Tsipras faced a rising wave of hostility... (Associated Press) 
 
 Riot police is on fire try as anti-austerity protesters throw petrol bombs during clashes in Athens, Wednesday, July 15, 2015. Greece has a tentative rescue deal, but relief that it is not falling out... (Associated Press) 
 
 Greece's Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras reacts during a parliament meeting in Athens, Thursday, July 16, 2015. Greece's Parliament has approved an austerity bill demanded by bailout creditors, despite... (Associated Press) 
 
 Riot police is on fire as anti-austerity protesters throw petrol bombs during clashes in Athens, Wednesday, July 15, 2015. Greece has a tentative rescue deal, but relief that it is not falling out of... (Associated Press) 
 
 Riot police try to avoid petrol bombs thrown by anti-austerity protesters during clashes in Athens, Wednesday, July 15, 2015. Greece has a tentative rescue deal, but relief that it is not falling out... (Associated Press) 
 
 Greece's Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras, right, and Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos react as they attend a parliament meeting in Athens, Thursday, July 16, 2015. Greece's Parliament has approved an... (Associated Press) 
 
 The bill has fueled anger in the governing Syriza party and led to a revolt by party members against the prime minister, who has insisted the deal forged after a marathon weekend eurozone summit was the best he could do to prevent Greece from catastrophically crashing out of Europe's joint currency. 
 
 The bill, which imposes sweeping tax hikes and spending cuts, was approved with 229 votes in favor, 64 against and six abstentions — and with the support of three pro-European opposition parties. 
 
 Prominent Syriza party members were among the 38 dissenters, including Energy Minister Panagiotis Lafazanis and former finance minister Yanis Varoufakis, who many blame for exacerbating tensions with Greece's creditors with his abrasive style during five months of tortured negotiations. 
 
 The vote came after an anti-austerity demonstration by about 12,000 protesters outside parliament degenerated into violence as the debate was getting underway Wednesday night. Riot police battled youths who hurled petrol bombs for about an hour before the clashes died down. 
 
 The bill was the first step Greece must take in order to begin negotiations with creditors on a new bailout — its third in five years — of about 85 billion euros ($93 billion) in loans over three years. 
 
 Dissenters argued that Greeks could not face any further cuts after six years of recession that saw poverty and unemployment skyrocket and wiped out a quarter of the country's economy. 
 
 Tsipras has been battling all week to persuade party hard-liners to back the deal. He has acknowledged the agreement reached with creditors was far from what he wanted and trampled on his pre-election promises of repealing austerity, but insisted the alternative would have been far worse for the country. 
 
 "We had a very specific choice: A deal we largely disagreed with, or a chaotic default," he told parliament ahead of the vote. 
 
 Tsipras had urged Syriza members to back the bill despite having urged voters to reject earlier, milder creditor demands in a July 5 referendum. Greeks voted overwhelmingly to reject those proposals. 
 
 Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos, who took over from Varoufakis the day after the referendum, said the deal Greece reached with its creditors on Monday was the only possible choice. 
 
 "I must tell you, that Monday morning at 9:30, it was the most difficult day of my life. It was a decision that will weigh on me for the rest of my life," Tsakalotos said. 
 
 "I don't know if we did the right thing. But I know we did something with the sense that we had no choice. Nothing was certain and nothing is," he told parliament. 
 
 High-ranking dissenters included Alternate Finance Minister Nadia Valavani, who resigned from her post earlier Wednesday, saying she could not vote in favor of the bill. 
 
 In a letter sent to Tsipras on Monday and released by the finance ministry Wednesday, Valavani said she believed "dominant circles in Germany" were intent on "the full humiliation of the government and the country." 
 
 The economy ministry's secretary general, Manos Manousakis, also resigned over the measures. 
 
 Parliament speaker Zoe Konstantopoulou, a prominent Syriza member, slammed the deal as a product of blackmail, calling it a "crime against humanity" and "social genocide." 
 
 Thursday's vote came after more than two weeks of capital controls, with Greek banks and the stock exchange shut since June 29 and ATM cash withdrawals limited to 60 euros per day. 
 
 With its banks dangerously low on liquidity and the state practically out of cash, Greece desperately needs funds. It faces a Monday deadline to repay 4.2 billion euros ($4.6 billion) to the European Central Bank, and is also in arrears on 2 billion euros to the IMF. 
 
 Negotiations on the new bailout will take an estimated four weeks, leaving European finance ministers scrambling to find ways to get Athens some money sooner. 
 
 The European Commission has proposed giving Greece 7 billion euros in loans from a special fund overseen by all 28 EU nations so it can meet its upcoming debts. The loan would be made pending the start of a full bailout program, but faces resistance from Britain, a non-euro member of the EU. 
 
 Germany argued one way for Greece to meet its financing obligations was for it to issue IOUs for domestic needs. 
 
 ____ 
 
 Raf Casert in Brussels and Frank Jordans in Berlin contributed to this report.
– Greece blinked today: In a showdown with creditors, the crisis-wracked country agreed to find the final $1.85 billion needed to reach the $14.2 billion in cuts required to get desperately needed aid money in September, reports Reuters. Greece had been asking for more time, but fed-up German and EU donors in turn threatened to pull the plug on the whole bailout. Instead, Greece will further cut pensions and wages. Germany's finance minister reiterated today that Greece was out of wriggle room, reports the AP. "The aid program is already very accommodating. I cannot see that there is still scope for further concessions," he said. But Greek unions and labor groups continue to buck hard against the austerity program. "We agreed on one thing—that we disagree on everything," said the head of Greece's leading union umbrella organization, calling the newly elected government "charlatans."