Greece exits bailout, austerity with euro group deal, more difficulties ahead: PM

ATHENS (Xinhua) - Greece exits the painful four-year bailout program and austerity after the deal clinched with euro zone creditors on Friday, Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras said on Saturday.

He warned, however, Greek people that despite the achievement of the extension of the international lifeline for four more months in return of reforms, more difficulties awaited Greece ahead in efforts to overcome the debt crisis.

"We won a battle, but not the war ... We achieved much, but a long and difficult path lies ahead of us," Tsipras said in a televised address.

"Yesterday we made an important step, leaving behind austerity, the memoranda and the troika," he stressed.

After two weeks of negotiations with euro zone partners Greece agreed to a bridging deal which extends the program expiring on Feb. 28 to May under strict conditions.

If euro zone partners approve the list of reforms Athens will present on Monday, and if creditors approve the review of policies promoted over the next two months, Greece will receive further financial aid to stay afloat and in the euro zone.

Friday's deal was welcomed with some relief by political analysts and representatives of the business world in Athens who feared the prospect of a confrontation with creditors and a cash crunch and Grexit.

On the other hand, despite concessions made by the new Left- led government which had outrightly rejected the bailout, the tight timetables and terms set by lenders have raised concern to pro- government commentators that Tsipras was left with small room to realize his policy program.

"We kept Greece on its feet with dignity," Tsipras stressed on Saturday.

The most critical phase of the negotiations starts after the four- month extension, when Athens will negotiate "the final agreement that will take us from the policy of the destructive memoranda to the policy of growth, employment and social cohesion, " he concluded.