Greece is going into today's meeting of euro zone finance ministers looking for a 'bridging loan' to allow the country to negotiate a wider debt restructuring deal by September.

Ireland's Finance Minister - Michael Noonan has said that such a deal would be "impossible."

The Irish Minister added that the country has a history of tax evasion - and that former Greek governments had failed to take action to repair the economy:

"I know it’s fashionable to put all the blame on the countries which were supplying money to Greece and credit to Greece but there is a problem with the way the programme was implemented in Greece."

Greece's Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis is likely to put-forward the following five point programme today:

• A 'bridge agreement' to buy some time.
• A commitment to implementing 70 percent of current reform programmes.
• The halving of the country's primary surplus target to 1.5 percent.
• The initiation of a negotiation process that will lead to debt relief (probably through a debt swap).
• The immediate implementation of modest social programmes in Greece - like subsidised meals for struggling families.

It is unlikely that these proposals will be accepted - Mr Varoufakis warned Greek policymakers to prepare for the possible "contemplate breakdown" of the euro zone.

He continued: "If you are not willing to even contemplate the prospect of a breakdown, then you are not negotiating."

German finance minister Wolfgang Schaeuble warned again yesterday that a bridging loan is not an option - the German government has insisted that Greece must stick to the existing agreement.

Irish Times' European correspondent Suzanne Lynch spoke about the meeting with Newstalk Breakfast.

She says that today is the beginning of a longer process - and that we will have to wait until the Eurogroup meeting on Monday (February 16th) to learn if the two sides can reach a compromise.

She adds that tensions over the deteriorating situation in Ukraine could push the EU towards offering concessions to Greece. This would protect the euro zone - and stop the Greeks turning to Russia for help.

The Greek defense minister Panos Kammenos has discussed the possibility of Greece seeking funding from the United States, Russia or China.

He will meet with his Russian counterpart today.