Within his newly released personal account, titled Ithaki, the ex- prime minister Alexis Tsipras does not hold back while he revisits the chaotic period during Greece's economic turmoil.
An Unconventional Appointment
In Tsipras's recollections, Tsipras appointed the maverick academic Varoufakis to be his finance minister mainly due to the latter's worldwide fame along with his “extremely attractive” skills as a speaker.
“In reality, he was, in reality, more of a celebrity and less of an economic expert,” wrote the 51-year-old.
Clashing Agendas
The former leader suggests how Varoufakis had a personal agenda that included advancing Varoufakis's books as well as testing out his own game theories using the nation rather than genuinely advocating its economic stability.
Tsipras wrote how the talks to prevent insolvency became “not only a way of achieving improved terms for Greece. They became an experiment, a monumental chance to prove the validity of Varoufakis's theories.”
High-Stakes Negotiations
During volatile negotiations, Greece came dangerously on the brink of leaving the eurozone.
On the line lay both Greece's future and the punishing austerity policies demanded in exchange for financial aid from foreign lenders.
Unsuccessful Options
Efforts to secure financing from other sources, including an urgent appeal to the Kremlin to purchase Greek bonds, fell on stony ground.
Helping Greece would be equivalent to tossing cash into the garbage, Putin is reputed to have informed Tsipras during their meeting.
Referendum and Reversal
In July 2015, those punitive conditions were subjected to a public vote, a move which threw the EU into further existential crisis.
Even though the vote was won resoundingly by voters who opposed austerity, the prime minister had little option but to ignore the result and agree to a bailout package from foreign lenders that proved to be more severe.
Breaking Point
Tsipras claimed how he began to doubt his finance minister quite early on.
“He was the public image of negotiation, the man who attracted media attention, who graced the covers of magazines globally … it seemed he was enjoying the spotlight.”
When the minister outlined a backup strategy involving establishing a secondary currency and distributing coupons to retirees, the leader knew that it was game over and asked Varoufakis: “Can you be serious?”
Lasting Rebuke
In the memoir, Tsipras asserts that his former ally demonstrated himself “unfit for a deal demanding complex and delicate management.”
Tsipras also wrote how Varoufakis's aggressive approach left him more and more alone with colleagues, endangered the country, and assisted hawks that were pushing for a Greek exit from the euro.
The retelling of events has provoked fury and shock among certain groups, while the former minister has so far kept a deafening silence on the matter.
