🔗 Share this article

Within his newly released autobiography, named Ithaki, the former prime minister Alexis Tsipras pulls no punches while he reflects on that chaotic period of Greece's economic turmoil.

An Unconventional Choice

In Tsipras's recollections, Tsipras appointed that maverick academic Varoufakis to be his treasury head largely because of his international reputation and Varoufakis's highly compelling abilities as a speaker.

“He was, in reality, more like a star and less of an economic expert,” stated Tsipras.

Clashing Priorities

The former leader suggests how his finance chief had his own motives which involved advancing Varoufakis's publications as well as experimenting with his own theories using the nation rather than genuinely advocating the country's financial survival.

Tsipras wrote that those talks to prevent insolvency became “not just a way to secure improved terms for the country. They became an experiment, an historic chance to prove the validity of his theories.”

High-Stakes Talks

Amid volatile discussions, Greece found itself perilously close to exiting the eurozone.

On the line was not only Greece's destiny and those harsh cutbacks demanded in return for bailout funds by foreign lenders.

Unsuccessful Alternatives

Efforts to find funds elsewhere, such as a desperate plea to the Kremlin to buy Greek government bonds, fell on stony ground.

Assisting Greece was equivalent to throwing money into the garbage, Putin reportedly told his Greek counterpart in Moscow.

Public Vote and Reversal

In July 2015, the excoriating conditions were put to a popular referendum, a move which threw the EU into a further crisis of identity.

Although the vote was won decisively by voters against the cuts, the prime minister had little option to ignore the result and negotiate a rescue deal from foreign lenders that turned out to be more severe.

Final Straw

Tsipras revealed that he started questioning his finance minister relatively soon.

“Varoufakis was the public image of negotiation, the figure who drew media attention, who graced the front pages of publications globally … it seemed he was enjoying the spotlight.”

After the minister outlined a backup strategy involving creating a secondary currency and issuing vouchers to pensioners, Tsipras said he realised that it was game over questioning him: “Is this for real?”

Lasting Criticism

Within the book, Tsipras concludes how his former ally had proved himself “unsuitable for an agreement that required complex and delicate management.”

Tsipras further wrote that his confrontational approach made him more and more alone with colleagues, endangered the country, and helped hardliners who were advocating a Greek exit from the euro.

The account of events has provoked anger along with shock in some quarters, while the former minister has so far kept a deafening silence regarding these claims.