The leader of SYRIZA Alexis Tsipras addressed the European Left conference in Brussels on Thursday, where he criticized the Greek government for returning to the markets and claimed that not canceling the debt is a “political crime”.
Mr. Tsipras questioned the logic behind the “triumphant return” to the markets with of debt 175% GDP, when Greece was forced into accepting the bailout because the debt of 120% GDP was considered non-viable. The SYRIZA leader told German television network ZDF that “the therapy was worse than the illness”.
According to the leader of the opposition, Greece was an experiment for which there was no exit strategy and an additional 60 billion euros will be needed by 2202, including 22 billion euros in interest. The goal was not to exit the crisis, but rather to implement new measures, argued Mr. Tsipras, who cited the 30% unemployment (60% for youth) rate as a reminder of the “success story” failure.
For the SYRIZA leader, canceling the debt is not a “radical choice”, but a necessity for the debt-ridden people of Europe and proposed a payment moratorium and introduction of a growth clause. If the debt problem is not addressed, Europe will be doomed to a vicious cycle of austerity. Mr. Tsipras also called for a European “New Deal” that would fund social structures such as Education and Healthcare.
The leader of the opposition also remarked that Mrs. Merkel’s visit to Athens is not a formality as such, as “she is coming to support her representative, Mr. Samaras” and brought up the controversial issue of German reparations. Mr. Samaras also warned Mrs. Merkel to prepare herself for «a government that can negotiate«, citing recent opinion polls.
