🔗 Share this article

In a freshly published memoir, titled Ithaki, the ex- leader Alexis Tsipras does not hold back as he revisits the chaotic period during Greece's debt drama.

A Controversial Choice

In Tsipras's account, he selected that unorthodox economist Yanis Varoufakis as his treasury head primarily due to his worldwide fame along with his highly compelling abilities when it came to speaker.

“In reality, he was, truthfully, more of a celebrity rather than an economic expert,” wrote the 51-year-old.

Clashing Priorities

The former leader alleges how his finance chief had his own motives which included promoting his books as well as experimenting with his game theories on Greece rather than truly fighting for its economic stability.

Tsipras explained that those talks to stave off bankruptcy became “not just a method of achieving a better deal for the country. They became a test, a monumental chance to demonstrate the validity of Varoufakis's economic theories.”

High-Stakes Negotiations

Amid rollercoaster negotiations, Greece came perilously close to leaving the single currency area.

On the line was both Greece's future but also those severe austerity measures demanded in exchange for rescue loans by foreign lenders.

Failed Alternatives

Efforts to secure financing from other sources, such as a desperate appeal to the Kremlin to purchase Greek bonds, went unanswered.

Assisting Greece was equivalent to throwing money in the trash-can, Putin reportedly told Tsipras in Moscow.

Referendum Followed by U-Turn

In July 2015, the harsh conditions were put to a public vote, an action that threw the EU into deeper crisis of identity.

Even though the vote was carried resoundingly by voters against austerity, the prime minister had little option to ignore the result and negotiate a bailout package from foreign lenders which proved to be even harsher.

Final Straw

The ex-PM claimed how he started questioning his finance minister relatively soon.

“Varoufakis was the public image of negotiation, the man who drew publicity, who graced the front pages of magazines globally … he gave the impression he relished his new role.”

When Varoufakis proposed a contingency plan involving creating a parallel currency and distributing coupons to retirees, the leader said he realised it was game over and asked him: “Is this for real?”

Lasting Criticism

Within the book, Tsipras asserts how Varoufakis demonstrated himself to be “unfit for a deal demanding complex and sensitive handling.”

Tsipras further wrote that Varoufakis's confrontational approach left him more and more alone with colleagues, put Greece at risk, while assisted hawks who were advocating Grexit.

The account of history has provoked anger along with shock in some quarters, whereas Varoufakis has so far kept a conspicuous quiet regarding these claims.