Greek leaders are due to agree the name of a new prime minister to lead a unity government until fresh polls are held.

The deal came after Prime Minister George Papandreou agreed to stand down.

It followed days of upheaval caused by his decision - now revoked - to hold a referendum on the EU bailout plan to tackle Greece's debt crisis.

The names of Lukas Papademos, a former deputy president of the European Central Bank, and Finance Minister Evangelos Venizelos have been floated.

The coalition is due to lead the country until elections, which could be held on 19 February, the finance ministry said.

Once the new leader is named, President Karolos Papoulias will invite parties to join the new government, according to a statement from the president's office issued on Sunday evening.

Mr Papoulias announced the agreement after hosting talks between Mr Papandreou and main opposition leader, Antonis Samaras.

The plan envisages elections being held once the government has approved an EU bailout package.

Mr Papandreou had been trying to build a national unity government to replace his Pasok party administration, but Mr Samaras, of the New Democracy party, had been refusing to negotiate unless his rival resigned first.

The two men also disagreed sharply on the timing of new elections, with Mr Papandreou seeking a delay of several months while Mr Samaras wanted them immediately.

A Greek government spokesman said a new administration would be sworn in and a confidence vote held within a week if all went well.

At a late-night meeting on Sunday, Mr Venizelos met opposition members and agreed that 19 February would be the most suitable date for elections, according to a finance ministry statements.

However few other details have emerged, such as how quickly the bailout deal might be approved.

Mr Papandreou narrowly won a confidence vote on Friday, but had been under continuing pressure to resign amid chaos over the debt crisis.

The fresh bailout deal was agreed by the European Union last month, but Mr Papandreou faced the wrath of fellow EU leaders when he announced that he would put the deal to the people of Greece in a referendum.

The idea was dropped days later, but not without sparking a deeper financial crisis and triggering the political crisis which led to the confidence vote.

The EU says no more funds will be released to Greece until the new bailout deal has been approved.

It gives the government 130bn euros (£111bn; $178bn) and imposes a 50% write-off on private holders of Greek debts, in return for deeply unpopular austerity measures.

The country has come under huge international pressure to resolve its political crisis, in order to calm the markets.

The possibility of Greece leaving the euro has also been raised by EU leaders, if it fails to resolve its political and financial problems.

A meeting of EU finance ministers is taking place on Monday, which added to the pressure on Greece to find an early solution to the political deadlock.

There are fears that the crisis could spread to bigger eurozone countries like Italy.

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