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According to Mark Mazower, Greece today is faced with three options for dealing with its difficult economic situation. "First, Greece could abandon all efforts to repay its loans and leave the euro zone. Let us put aside the complex legal processes that are associated with it and see what the consequences will be. Some time ago, Joseph Stiglitz told me that this was not such a bad option: In the beginning, there would be chaos but afterwards, with a devalued national currency, Greece could achieve growth through exports. Professor Stiglitz won the Nobel Prize in economics and he knows more than I know, but I think he is wrong in this case. I think Greece needs a stable currency and the European currency is stable at present.

The second option is for Greece to remain in the euro zone but through the establishment of a "joint social front" as SYRIZA proposes. I do not think that Greece is able to achieve growth alone. It is just the opposite. Although I do not like the term "peoples" and "nations" that I read in SYRIZA’s programme, I do not think peoples in Europe are ready to rescue Greece. I think that the public opinion in the north European countries now is that the countries in the South should not be supported so much. Governments are actually making great efforts. Europe would be more democratic if it did not help Greece so much, not the opposite.

The third path is the one that all Greek governments have been following since the start of the crisis. Many things can be said about the measures introduced, but the only thing that is certain is that the majority of Greek society supports that attempt, because it is aware that in the past, the country received very strong political and financial support from its involvement in the European structures."

The historian stressed that the Greek society and the political system have already shown that they are able to form a coalition government with the participation of many parties. "The problem is the politicians themselves, who seem to be completely unable to understand the crisis of their legitimacy. I think this crisis and its resolving are the "key" to dealing with the economic crisis. When the leader of Golden Dawn says its members’ hands are clean, it is not a threat to immigrants but delegitimization of an entire system. The loss of legitimacy is associated with corruption, but its roots are not there but in the apparent failure of the political system. It is clear that Greek politicians cannot take their share of responsibility for the current situation in a non-party manner.

Not one politician has made a statement on behalf of the entire political system to accept at least some responsibility for the mistakes made in the past. Instead, we have heard the expression: "We 'ate' it (the money) together." It was not only unnecessary but was offensive as well. Anyway, the money was not "eaten" by all. Some "ate" more than others did, whereas others had to "eat" and others - not. Most importantly, however, such a view is actually an attempt of the political elite to avoid the responsibilities.

The implications of this are many. First, this political elite cannot speak about the achievements of the past 30 years, and there were some: political stability and prosperity. It can neither lead the society, nor require more sacrifices from it. Instead of sharing these sacrifices, the political elite remains untouched, it blames everyone but itself. Apparently, it is unable to understand how fragile the situation is. The rise of Golden Dawn should upset the political elite more than it seems to be doing at the moment."

Mark Mazower described the events in 1936, when "the whole political system in Greece collapsed and the power passed into the hands of a not charismatic man - dictator Ioannis Metaxas, who actually had no opponent. So, people gradually withdrew from politicians. It is not impossible for us to be on the verge of a similar situation today. Unfortunately, the solution is in the hands of Greek politicians. But will they be able to deal with this challenge, to realize the need of reorganization and renovation? I am not talking about the parties butabout  a new, democratic and creative way for politics."

According to the historian, Greek politicians must do so "not only symbolically" and it should be done this year, which is very important mainly because of the upcoming elections in Germany. "They should avoid pompous phrases. Many people tell me that Greece looks like in a time of war. I do not think so. On the other hand, we listen to the language and phrases from the era of wars, both from the Left and from the Right. SYRIZA wants to create a joint front to punish the traitors, to introduce a new socialist system, etc. I think this is wrong because it leads to polarization and ultimately, to increased violence, as seen especially in the last two years. I understand that this is the only way for some politicians to become protagonists in a drama at a time, when conditions do not allow the expression of great deeds and heroism. Extreme right forces use the same rhetoric. Yes, Greece is not in a state of war, but it has to resolve the crisis, as if it were in a similar situation. It should create a pluralist political coalition to lead the country forward."