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The arrest of the Executive Director of the International Monetary Fund Dominique Strauss-Kahn, who was arrested in New York on Saturday on charges of sexual abuse, would have negative implications for Greece, say local economists in conversation with GRReporter. Dominique Strauss-Kahn was one of the important players on the international arena, who contributed much to save the Greek economy from bankruptcy a year ago and they are sorry for him in Athens. Over the weekend, the Frenchman had to meet the German Chancellor Angela Merkel to discuss the possible additional support for the troubled Greek economy, but the meeting did not take place because of the "Manhattan adventure." The delay is the most innocent complication that economists expect.

The inspection carried out by the supervisory Troika of the IMF, the European Commission and the European Central Bank, headed by Paul Thomsen, Matthias Morse and Klaus Masuch in Athens continues at full speed. "The implementation of the program for financial stability continues, the measures have nothing to do with specific individual persons," told Dow Jones Newswires the government spokesman George Petalotis. Parliament members believe that someone was very well aware of Strauss-Kahn’s habits and has benefited from his weaknesses. "Obviously the popularity and the prospects for Strauss-Kahn are obstacles for someone. It happened in the United States several times. Remember the former mayor of Washington," said the chairman of the nationalist party LAOS George Karatzeferis.

The international economists are divided on how the removal of Dominique Strauss-Kahn from the global financial scene would affect Greece. The confidence that the IMF, led by Dominique Strauss-Kahn, would never turn its back on Europe now seems unfounded, stated Esvar Prasad of Brookings Institution. And James Nixon of Societe Generale said that the arrest of the Executive Director of the IMF is not a fatal blow to Greece because the negotiations of this kind never depend on just one person.

The love life of the IMF representatives is not for the first time in the Greek media. Dominique Strauss-Kahn even attracted the interest of the charming Petroula from the comic Radio Avrila.

But nothing can compare to the current scandal. The news of the arrest of Strauss-Kahn and the possible consequences for the country dominates all the Greek media. "The pink scandal exploded like a bomb," writes Naftemporiki. "A political earthquake, but a conspiracy theory too," is the headline of Ethnos. "The IMF is in the process of searching for a successor," is the focus of Kathimerini. "John Lipsky - who is Strauss-Kahn’s successor," states Vima newspaper.

Dominique Strauss-Kahn was arrested in New York on Saturday on board of a Air France plane which had to take him to Europe for tense talks on the new package of financial support to Greece. A 32-year-old maid in the Manhattan Sofitel Hotel accused him that he had jumped naked from the bathroom while she was cleaning his room and had tried to rape her. The young lady was taken to the hospital, and the Executive Director of the IMF – to a police station in Harlem. Formal charges of sexual abuse were filed against him; he was subjected to a medical examination and is expected to be brought before a prosecutor. "He is tired, but strong and will vigorously fight the charges," said his lawyer Benjamin Brafman: