European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker said on Friday that stalled debt talks between Athens and its creditors would restart but put the ball firmly in the Greek government's court to come up with an acceptable deal.
Juncker spoke after the International Monetary Fund quit negotiations in Brussels on Thursday, and a European Union leader bluntly told Athens to stop "gambling" with its future.
Time is fast running out for Greece to strike a cash-for-reforms deal with its creditors and stave off a default at the end of June that could see it tumbling out of the euro zone.
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Both sides tried to keep hope alive on Friday. A senior minister and close adviser to Tsipras said he hoped for a deal on June 18, at a meeting of euro zone finance ministers.
Juncker also stressed the process was not yet over. "Negotiations will start again, first at a technical level, then a political one," he told French radio. "A deal is necessary in the coming days," adding: "The ball is in the Greek court."
Greece needs a deal to unlock aid or loosen curbs on how much it can borrow in short term debt before a 1.6 billion euro ($1.8 billion) repayment to the IMF falls due by the end of this month.
Renewed uncertainty sent Greece's top share index .ATG down 4 percent on Friday morning. The German tabloid Bild reported that the German government was holding "concrete consultations", including about introducing capital controls restricting bank withdrawals in Greece and transfers abroad should the country go bust.
