Within his recently unveiled memoir, titled Ithaki, the former premier Tsipras does not hold back while he revisits that chaotic era during Greece's debt drama.
A Controversial Appointment
As per Tsipras's account, Tsipras chose that maverick economist Varoufakis as his finance minister primarily because of his worldwide fame along with Varoufakis's very persuasive abilities when it came to public orator.
“He was, actually, more of a personality rather than an economist,” stated the 51-year-old.
Conflicting Agendas
Tsipras claims that his finance chief had his own motives which included promoting Varoufakis's publications as well as experimenting with his game theories on Greece instead of truly advocating the country's economic stability.
He explained that those negotiations to prevent insolvency became “not just a way of achieving improved terms for Greece. They became a test, a monumental chance to prove the truth of his economic theories.”
Critical Negotiations
Amid tense discussions, Greece found itself perilously on the brink of exiting the single currency area.
On the line was not only the country's destiny and the harsh austerity measures demanded in return for rescue loans from foreign lenders.
Unsuccessful Alternatives
Efforts to secure financing from other sources, including an urgent appeal to the Kremlin to purchase Greek government bonds, went unanswered.
Assisting the indebted country was tantamount to tossing cash into the garbage, the Russian leader reportedly told Tsipras in Moscow.
Public Vote Followed by U-Turn
In July 2015, the punitive conditions were put to a public vote, an action which threw the EU into further existential crisis.
Even though the referendum was carried resoundingly by those who opposed the cuts, the prime minister was forced to reject its outcome and agree to a bailout package with foreign lenders that proved to be more severe.
Breaking Point
The ex-PM revealed that he began to doubt his finance minister relatively soon.
“He was the face of the talks, the man who attracted media attention, who appeared on the covers of magazines globally … it seemed he relished his new role.”
When Varoufakis proposed a contingency plan involving creating a secondary currency and issuing vouchers to retirees, the leader said he realised it was the end and asked him: “Can you be serious?”
Enduring Rebuke
In the memoir, Tsipras asserts that his former ally had proved himself “unfit for an agreement that required complex and sensitive management.”
He further wrote that Varoufakis's confrontational style made him more and more alone among peers, endangered the country, while assisted hawks that were pushing for a Greek exit from the euro.
This account of events has been met with anger and shock among certain groups, whereas the former minister has so far kept a deafening silence regarding these claims.
