The Alternate Minister of International Economic Relations Euclid Tsakalotos estimated that the government “made a mistake” when it failed to secure funding in the Eurogroup agreement of 20 February, in a Friday-morning interview for ANT1.
Mr. Tsakalotos admitted that the SYRIZA-led coalition government was inexperienced in certain areas, but suggested that there was also a mutual lack of trust between both sides.
Specifically, he cites the talks on labor reforms, noting that after being called to make reform proposals, the institutions react to the collective agreements. Mr. Tsakalotos explained that aside from collective agreements being a right and having a positive financial impact, the government cannot be forced to adopt a neoliberal model.
Additionally, the Alternate Minister argued that the austerity policies cannot carry on, suggesting that a falling out with Europe was still possible. Nevertheless, Mr. Tsakalotos disapproved of his colleagues publicly talking about the possibility of a referendum or early elections, noting though that a falling out may raise a “political issue”.
