Backstory: EU and Debt

Earlier this week, Standard & Poor’s downgraded the credit of nine European countries. In Greece, the government and private creditors continue to meet to renegotiate the debt there. On today’s first Backstory, Stuart Kirk, the head of the Lex column in The Financial Times, discusses this week’s negotiations, why many in Europe are now bracing for a Greek default, and how Europe is trying to cope with its continuing debt crisis in the new year.