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Varoufakis’ ministerial post is tottering

24 June 2015 / 16:06:08  GRReporter
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The situation associated with sending the Greek proposal to Brussels on Monday morning was dynamic, but somehow humiliating to Yanis Varoufakis.

The talks between the Greek government and the Troika had continued until dawn in order for creditors to be sent a proposal with measures that they would consider satisfactory.

A major role on the Greek side played not a representative of the Ministry of Finance, nor head of the negotiating team Efklidis Tsakalotos but State Minister Nikos Pappas, who had arrived in Brussels as a representative of the Greek Prime Minister.

Once it became clear that the concessions on the part of the government were closer to the demands of the creditors, they requested that the proposal be submitted in writing, which was done immediately. However, they returned the document sent from Athens.

As iefimerida wrote yesterday, the representatives of the creditors had not accepted the Greek proposal that the government had sent on Sunday night.

At that moment, all thought it was a mistake. At least they stated so before the Financial Times reporter Peter Spiegel, who immediately reported the news that Greece had sent a wrong email.

However, what creditors considered to be a mistake was the fact that the proposals were signed by Minister of Finance Yanis Varoufakis.

Creditors refused to accept a proposal from Greece that bore the signature of the finance minister.

As soon as Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras was informed of the problem, he immediately signed the proposal, in his hotel in Brussels, just before leaving for his meeting with Jean-Claude Juncker.

Here is what Mega TV correspondent in Brussels Manolis Spintourakis reported,
 
"While examining the Greek proposal early in the morning, they suddenly said there was a mistake in the text. There was a commotion but eventually it became clear that the text was not wrong but signed by Yanis Varoufakis. They requested Alexis Tsipras to sign the document, which did happen, and the matter was over."

Meanwhile, an article in the Financial Times states that within the ruling SYRIZA party there are voices against the measures proposed to creditors by the Greek Prime Minister. The resistance against the Greek proposal began on Monday, even before Tsipras returned to Athens from Brussels.

While it is logical for the usual suspects (the left platform, Alexis Mitropoulos, Ioannis Michelogiannakis) to be among the discontented, some questions are arising from what the newspaper writes about Yanis Varoufakis,

"Some members of SYRIZA’s leadership worry that Yanis Varoufakis may be preparing to break ranks with the government and leave his post. This year Varoufakis threatened to secede and take a group of SYRIZA colleagues with him after Alexis Tsipras, following the call of senior European leaders, suggested that the finance minister should resign.

Currently Tsipras is partly under threat as while rushing to compile a list of credible reforms in recent weeks, he and members of his team neglected 20-30 potential rebels in his parliamentary group.

Moreover, he is facing popular discontent. On Tuesday afternoon, hundreds of pensioners took to the streets of Athens to protest against the cuts in pensions proposed by the government to creditors."

The article states that if SYRIZA lost at least 10 MPs during the voting on the agreement, it would have to seek support from the opposition parties. Therefore, it might pass the agreement in this way but it would damage the credibility of the government, putting under question its future.

Many of those who oppose Tsipras belong to the extreme left in terms of ideology and they are ready to vote according to conscience, not according to the party line.

As stated by lecturer at the University of Athens George Pagoulatos, "There are quite a few mavericks in the parliamentary group of SYRIZA who do not accept the "massage" that their party and the government are trying to perform. For some, this package of measures is a real shock."

 

Tags: Alexis TsiprasYanis VaroufakisCreditorsNegotiationsGreek proposal
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