Greek government-debt crisis timeline

The Greek government-debt crisis began in 2009 and, as of July 2015, is ongoing. During this period many changes have occurred in Greece. The income of many Greeks has declined, levels of unemployment have increased, elections and resignations of politicians have altered the country's political landscape radically, the Greek parliament has passed many austerity bills, and protests have become common sights throughout the country.

Greece joined the European Communities (subsequently subsumed by the European Union) on 1 January 1981, ushering in a period of sustained growth. Widespread investments in industrial enterprises and heavy infrastructure, as well as funds from the European Union and growing revenues from tourism, shipping and a fast-growing service sector raised the country's standard of living to unprecedented levels. The country adopted the Euro in 2001 and over the next 7 years the country's GDP per capita nearly tripled, from $12,400 in 2001 to $31,700 in 2008. The Greek government, encouraged by the European Commission, European Central Bank, private banking institutions, and the Greek business community also took out loans to pay Greek and foreign infrastructure companies for a wide variety of infrastructure projects such as those related to the 2004 Summer Olympic Games in Athens. Government deficits were also consistently underreported. As the Financial crisis of 2007–08 began to affect Greece's economy, the country's GDP fell by nearly 20% from 2008 to 2010 and the government's capacity to repay its creditors was drastically reduced.

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