The European Council [official website] on Monday announced [text, PDF] a preliminary deal to manage Greek debt without the country defaulting or leaving the European Union. The agreement requires Greece to increase tax revenue, cut costs and implement a number of fiscal regulatory policies [Fiscal Compact, PDF]. It also includes €35 billion in funding to the country. In its statement, the council said the agreement also lays the groundwork for further negotiations on the specifics of its implementation. European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker [official website] said [statement, video] he was pleased that the plan kept Greece in the EU and included a growth package along with the regulatory mandates. The Greek Parliament [official website] must still approve the deal before it takes effect. That vote is expected by Wednesday.

Last week, Greece’s parliament voted to accept the economic reforms earlier rejected [JURIST reports] by the government. Earlier this month, as the country was preparing for the vote, protesters in Greece gathered [JURIST report] in the tens of thousands, holding rival rallies that drew attention to the split within the country as the referendum approached. In April nineteen eurozone creditors held a meeting [JURIST report] in Latvia to demand the completion of the economic reform program agreed to be Greece necessary to avoid a Grecian default or exit from the euro. Earlier that month the European Central Bank (ECB) expressed concerns [JURIST report] about Greece’s draft law that prohibits the government from foreclosing on primary residences where borrowers can prove total wealth requirements as ripe for unscrupulous debtors to engage in strategic defaults without repercussions. In March Greece’s parliament passed an anti-poverty bill [JURIST report] that would provide free electricity and food-stamps to low-income households.