crisis would come – but they didn't do anything. true. when the financial crisis started in the usa, i believed that it would come across the ocean and hit countries with large imbalances, like greece, the hardest. in january 2009, for example, i warned the political leadership that it was necessary to act because growth could not be sustained in light of the large fiscal and external imbalances. but since greece had been growing at a rapid pace for many years, my warnings were not taken seriously into consideration.... shoot the messenger … exactly, the messenger was not popular. again, both before and immediately after the october 2009 election in greece i warned that the deficit as a percent of gdp could explode to double - digit levels. but my warnings were ignored. instead, government spending continued to increase. shocking enough. so why are you optimistic that premier samaras will act? bis central bankers ’ speeches greeks, including politicians, realize that this is the last chance for greece. we are all wiser and determined to keep greece in the euro. prime minister samaras and the other leaders of the coalition government are delivering and will continue to deliver. how is it to be the greek in the ecb meetings? for nearly three years you had to ask for help nearly every four weeks... in fact, we meet every two weeks. i will answer as to a psychiatrist ( laughs ). because of the painful, but necessary adjustment measures that i advocate, some greeks do not view me sympathetically. in frankfurt, as the only person at the table from the country from which the euro crisis originated, the situation has, at times, been difficult, even though i forewarned my country on the dangers that we faced. i must add that my governing council colleagues have gone out of their way to support greece throughout the crisis. still you try to be optimistic. is that really founded? the greek economy is set to contract more. although this will be a difficult year, i believe that the worst is over for greece. i expect the economy to contract by about 4 percent this year, mainly as a result of additional fiscal measures. the crucial question is, will the mood brighten because of the progress and thus boost the economy? i believe that we have been taking – and will continue to take – the measures necessary to restore sustainable growth. plus, the banking system is more efficient and more competitive … … what did you do exactly? the banks were

that, what i think is important is to create and maintain a virtuous cycle in which the inflation rate rises, albeit gradually, along with an increase in nominal wages. in this connection, i think that, even in a situation where wages and prices increase in a balanced manner over time, given that other advanced economies are currently on a disinflationary trend, japan ’ s inflation rate may still be susceptible to downward pressure. 1 iii. monetary policy the bank introduced qqe in april 2013, with a view to achieving the price stability target of 2 percent in terms of the year - on - year rate of change in the cpi at the earliest possible time, with a time horizon of about two years. in this policy, the main operating target for money market operations was changed from the uncollateralized overnight call rate to the monetary base, and it was decided that the bank would aim to double the monetary base in two years. in doing so, it would purchase massive amounts of japanese government bonds ( jgbs ), for historical developments in japan ’ s inflation rate and a comparison with other major economies, see “ recent developments in economic activity and prices, and future monetary policy ”, a speech by takahide kiuchi at a meeting with business leaders in kanagawa on february 28, 2013, available on the bank ’ s web site ( http : / / www. boj. or. jp / en / announcements / press / koen _ 2013 / ko130319a. htm / ). bis central bankers ’ speeches with all maturities made eligible for purchases. in addition, in aiming to achieve the price stability target of 2 percent, the bank made a commitment that it would continue with qqe as long as it is necessary for maintaining the target in a stable manner. so far, qqe has exerted positive effects on japan ’ s economy through a positive influence on the expectations of financial markets and of firms and households. since the introduction of the policy in april, however, while supporting the concrete measures of qqe, i have continued to propose changing the expression in the statement on monetary policy regarding the time frame for achieving the 2 percent price stability target and for continuing with qqe, although my proposal has been repeatedly defeated by a majority vote during the mpms. let me explain the intention of my proposal as well as my personal views on some points of discussion regarding the conduct of monetary policy. a.