Greek Prime Minister Costas Karamanlis said in a statement on Thursday that the government has a clear plan and a steadfast will to handle the international economic crisis.

Karamanlis, who was speaking at the Prime Minister Office Thursday night, stressed that the government's responsible and stable policy guarantees a better future for all citizens. He said that government policy is based on three axes, in maintaining growth, even with lower rates this year, but with higher rates in the years to come.

Karamanlis referred to the economy's fluidity program, to supporting businesses, to boosting public investments and to promoting necessary reforms.

The second target is monetary restructuring by curbing expenditures, limiting extravagance and restricting tax evasion. The third target is supporting the financially weaker to the economy's endurance limits with targeted interventions in socially vulnerable groups, while shielding employment at the same time, according to the statement.

The prime minister said that social cohesion is the base of government policy and that nothing is easy and nor can it be done from one day to the next and added that everyone must help to overcome this crisis.

Karamanlis underlined that with the new stability and growth program, following the revision of evaluations of all the international organizations as well, "the government is taking all factors into consideration with a new mixture of policy. No country and no society can handle the international crisis by itself. However, we can, with a specific program, prevent the grave repercussions with realism and with a stable policy."