Key ministers keep positions in Greek cabinet reshuffle

ATHENS, Greece – Key members of the Greek government, including those involved in the country’s creditor-mandated bailout program such as Finance Minister Euclid Tsakalotos, have retained their positions in a cabinet reshuffle.

Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras’ new cabinet, announced Tuesday, contains only minor changes, including new ministers for the interior, public order, justice and culture.

Tsipras also handed out positions to an independent lawmaker elected with the conservative main opposition New Democracy party, and a former Socialist cabinet minister.

The next general election has to take place by September 2019. Tsipras’s governing Syriza party is trailing New Democracy in opinion polls.

Tsipras will be hoping he can improve his party’s fortunes now that Greece has exited its bailout program. Greece had relied on emergency loans for the past eight years to avoid bankruptcy.