In a recently unveiled personal account, called Ithaki, the former prime minister Tsipras pulls no punches while he revisits the turbulent era of Greece's financial crisis.
A Controversial Choice
As per Tsipras's recollections, he selected the unorthodox academic Yanis Varoufakis to be the finance minister primarily because of his worldwide fame along with his “extremely attractive” abilities as a speaker.
“In reality, he was, in reality, more like a star and less of an economic expert,” recalled Tsipras.
Clashing Priorities
The former leader alleges how Varoufakis had a personal motives which included advancing his books and testing out his own game theories using the nation rather than truly fighting for its economic stability.
He wrote that those discussions to stave off insolvency were “not just a way to secure a better deal for Greece. They were an experiment, an historic opportunity to demonstrate the validity of his economic theories.”
Critical Negotiations
During tense negotiations, Greece found itself perilously on the brink of leaving the eurozone.
At stake lay not only the country's future and the punishing austerity policies required in exchange for rescue loans by international creditors.
Unsuccessful Alternatives
Efforts to find funds elsewhere, such as an urgent appeal to the Kremlin to purchase Greek government bonds, went unanswered.
Helping Greece would be tantamount to throwing money into the garbage, the Russian leader is reputed to have informed his Greek counterpart in Moscow.
Referendum Followed by U-Turn
That summer, the harsh conditions were subjected to a popular referendum, a move which threw the EU into further crisis of identity.
Although the vote was won resoundingly by those who opposed the cuts, Tsipras had little option to ignore the result and negotiate a rescue deal from foreign lenders which proved to be more severe.
Breaking Point
Tsipras claimed that he started questioning his finance minister quite early on.
“Varoufakis was the public image of negotiation, the man who drew media attention, who graced the front pages of publications globally … he gave the impression he relished the spotlight.”
When Varoufakis outlined a contingency plan involving creating a secondary currency as well as distributing coupons to pensioners, the leader said he realised that it was the end questioning Varoufakis: “Are you serious?”
Enduring Rebuke
In the memoir, Tsipras concludes how Varoufakis had proved himself to be “unfit for an agreement that required intricate and delicate management.”
Tsipras further wrote how his aggressive approach left him increasingly isolated among peers, put Greece at risk, and helped hardliners who were advocating a Greek exit from the euro.
The retelling of events has been met with anger and stunned disbelief in some quarters, whereas Varoufakis has maintained a deafening silence regarding these claims.
