Germany Considers Greek 'Timeout' From Eurozone: Paper

Germany's Finance Ministry believes Greece's latest reform proposals do not go far enough and has suggested two alternative courses for Athens, including a "timeout" from the eurozone, the Frankfurter Allgemeine Sonntagszeitung (FAS) reported.

"These proposals miss out important central reform areas to modernize the country and to bring economic growth and sustainable development over the long term," the FAS quoted the ministry as writing in a position paper.

Instead, the ministry set out two alternative courses for Greece. Under the first, Athens would improve its proposals quickly and transfer assets worth 50 billion euros ($56 billion) to a fund in order to pay down its debt.

Under the second scenario, Greece would take a "timeout" from the eurozone of at least five years and restructure its debt, while remaining a member of the European Union.

The Finance Ministry declined to comment on the FAS report.

(Writing by Paul Carrel; Editing by Robin Pomeroy)