President Barack Obama has said there were many compromise possibilities to reach a bi-partisan solution to the debt problem and he expressed confidence that a solution would be found. The fiscal fiasco leaves the US inching closer to a potentially catastrophic default on federal debt next Tuesday. The White House has warned the government will run out of money to pay all its bills unless a $14.3 trillion borrowing limit is increased by August 2nd. Mr Obama urged Democrats and Republicans to “seek common ground” to solve the situation. Observers in Greece, China and Ireland give their thoughts on the debt crisis in the United States. We also hear from Australia, where a similar impasse in the seventies was resolved in a way that couldn’t happen here.