Within his newly released memoir, titled Ithaki, the ex- leader Tsipras does not hold back while he examines that chaotic period during Greece's financial crisis.
A Controversial Choice
According to Tsipras's account, he appointed the unorthodox academic Varoufakis as the finance minister primarily because of the latter's worldwide fame and his “extremely attractive” abilities as a public orator.
“He was, actually, more like a celebrity rather than an economic expert,” stated the 51-year-old.
Conflicting Priorities
The former leader claims how his finance chief had a personal motives which included promoting his publications as well as testing out his own economic models on Greece instead of truly fighting for the country's economic stability.
Tsipras wrote that the negotiations to prevent bankruptcy were “not only a way of achieving a better deal for the country. They were an experiment, an historic opportunity to demonstrate the validity of his theories.”
Critical Talks
Amid rollercoaster negotiations, the country found itself perilously on the brink of leaving the eurozone.
At stake lay both the country's destiny and those severe austerity policies required in return for financial aid by international creditors.
Unsuccessful Alternatives
Efforts to secure financing from other sources, such as an urgent plea to the Kremlin to buy Greek government bonds, fell on stony ground.
Helping Greece was equivalent to throwing money in the trash-can, Putin reportedly informed Tsipras in Moscow.
Referendum and U-Turn
In July 2015, those excoriating conditions were put to a popular referendum, an action which plunged the EU into a deeper existential crisis.
Even though the referendum was won decisively by those who opposed austerity, Tsipras was forced but to ignore the result then agree to a bailout package from creditors which turned out to be tougher.
Final Straw
Tsipras revealed how he started questioning his finance minister quite early on.
“He was the face of the talks, the figure who attracted publicity, who appeared on the front pages of publications globally … he gave the impression he was enjoying his new role.”
When the minister proposed a backup strategy that included establishing a secondary currency and distributing coupons to pensioners, the leader knew it was game over and asked Varoufakis: “Can you be serious?”
Enduring Rebuke
In the book, Tsipras asserts how Varoufakis had proved himself “unfit for a deal demanding intricate and sensitive handling.”
He further wrote how Varoufakis's confrontational style made him more and more alone with colleagues, endangered the country, while assisted hawks that were pushing for a Greek exit from the euro.
This retelling of events has provoked anger along with shock in some quarters, while Varoufakis has maintained a deafening silence on the matter.
