Within his freshly published personal account, titled Ithaki, the ex- prime minister Tsipras spares no criticism as he revisits that chaotic period during Greece's financial crisis.
An Unconventional Appointment
As per Tsipras's version, Tsipras chose the maverick academic Varoufakis as the finance minister mainly due to the latter's global profile along with his very persuasive abilities when it came to public orator.
“He was, in reality, more like a personality rather than an economist,” recalled the 51-year-old.
Conflicting Agendas
The former leader alleges that Varoufakis possessed his own motives that involved promoting Varoufakis's books and testing out his theories using Greece rather than truly advocating its financial survival.
Tsipras noted how those negotiations to stave off insolvency were “not only a method of achieving a better deal for Greece. They were an experiment, an historic chance to demonstrate the validity of his ideas.”
Critical Negotiations
Amid rollercoaster negotiations, Greece found itself dangerously close to leaving the single currency area.
At stake lay not only the country's destiny and the severe austerity policies demanded in exchange for rescue loans from international creditors.
Unsuccessful Options
Efforts to secure funds from other sources, such as an urgent plea to the Kremlin to purchase Greek bonds, fell on stony ground.
Helping the indebted country was equivalent to throwing money in the trash-can, the Russian leader is reputed to have told Tsipras in Moscow.
Referendum Followed by Reversal
That summer, those harsh bailout terms were subjected to a popular referendum, a move which plunged Europe into deeper crisis of identity.
Even though the vote was carried resoundingly by those against austerity, Tsipras had little option but to ignore the result then agree to a bailout package with creditors which turned out to be even harsher.
Breaking Point
The ex-PM claimed how he started questioning his finance minister quite early on.
“Varoufakis was the public image of the talks, the figure who drew media attention, who appeared on the covers of magazines globally … he gave the impression he was enjoying the spotlight.”
When Varoufakis proposed a backup strategy that included creating a parallel currency as well as issuing vouchers to retirees, the leader said he realised it was the end questioning Varoufakis: “Is this for real?”
Enduring Rebuke
Within the memoir, Tsipras asserts how Varoufakis demonstrated himself to be “unsuitable for a deal that required intricate and sensitive management.”
He also claimed that Varoufakis's aggressive approach left him increasingly isolated among peers, put Greece at risk, while assisted hawks who were advocating Grexit.
The retelling of events has provoked anger along with stunned disbelief in some quarters, while the former minister has so far kept a deafening silence on the matter.
