Talks between Greece and officials from the EU and IMF are continuing today on the next instalment of bailout loans to the stricken country.
Greece will run out of money to pay salaries and pensions next month unless it receives the next €8bn instalment of emergency loans.
It follows yesterday's talks between Greek Prime Minister, George Papandreou and French President Nicolas Sarkozy to discuss the country's debt crisis.
European officials are scrambling to avert a Greek debt default, which could wreck balance sheets of European banks, damage the prospects of the euro single currency and possibly plunge the world into a new global financial crisis.
Negotiators from the International Monetary Fund, European Union and European Central Bank, known as the Troika, left Greece a month ago saying they were not convinced Greece could carry out the necessary spending cuts and tax hikes.
The negotiators returned this week after getting written assurances that the government would implement the measures. They met officials, including Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos, today for a third day of talks.
Hundreds of blackshirted anarchists have marched through the capital's central Syntagma Square, chanting slogans and carrying black and red flags.
Police hope to prevent a repeat of violent clashes in June in which more than 100 people were hurt.
Striking civil servants have tried to block some of the talks. At one point yesterday transport ministry workers prevented the troika envoys from reaching their minister.
