Le Monde | | Interview by
Provocateur, idealistic, arrogant. Yanis Varoufakis, former Greek finance minister, fascinates it annoys. Four days before his visit to France, the Feast of the Rose, to Frangy-en-Bresse (Saône-et-Loire), Sunday, August 23, the troublemaker economist received Le Monde 19 August on the Greek island of Aegina, where he has a house
Read also the meeting. The “star” Varoufakis seeks a destiny
The third plan of aid to Greece, which he defined as a “capitulation” face to creditors of Athens, will lead his country into the abyss, he explains. He denounces the opacity of the Eurogroup, which according to him, takes major decisions for the future of the euro area without the citizens being informed.
France has -t it was an ally of the government of Alexis Tsipras during negotiations with Greece’s partners?
Most Europeans think that in recent months Greece has negotiated with its eurozone partners . It is not the case. During the five months I have been involved within the Eurogroup [Finance Ministers Meeting of the euro zone], my colleagues sent back to me systematically representatives of institutions, namely the European Commission, the European Central Bank (ECB) and International Monetary Fund (IMF).
I never negotiated directly with Michel Sapin, my French colleague. Nor with Wolfgang Schäuble, the German finance minister, which ensured that he could do anything for me and sent me to the institutions.
Even when Mr Schäuble and I finally opened a dialogue, shortly before I left, it was clear that any degree of convergence between us could be expressed formally
This is the great lesson of recent months. Eurozone is the most powerful economic zone but nobody directs – or at least, no one elected. She created a monster, the Eurogroup, where finance ministers not really negotiate with each other.
Reproach you to the Greek government for signing the third plane help?
I voted against this program. This government, including me, was elected in January on a simple commitment: not signed with creditors economically unsustainable agreement. That is to say, which would aggravate the recession and literally make it impossible to debt repayment. Since 2010, Greece has twice committed the mistake of accepting such plans. We promised to stop it, and in my case, I never changed position
Read also the report. The incredible ” Plan B “Mr. Varoufakis
Unfortunately, the Prime Minister has come to accept this third program, yet he himself described as bad. The whole of Europe will come out the loser. For my part, I have drawn the consequences by resigning as I committed to do so
Read also the analysis. The Eurogroup, the embryo European government
This new program, 86 billion euros, has yet allowed Greece to avoid the “Grexit” an exit from the euro zone.
This is how the media present things. But I do not share that analysis. If Greece is trying, despite common sense and basic laws of economics, to apply this Memorandum and accompanying reforms, it will run right to Grexit. Because this program is designed to sink our economy
. Result: we can not keep our commitments, and Dr. Schäuble will point the finger at us and cut aid to the country. The Grexit is clearly the objective pursued.
You state that Mr. Schäuble wants to push Greece out of the euro. Why?
To reach France. The French welfare state, its labor law, its national companies are the real target of the German finance minister. He considers Greece as a laboratory of austerity, where the memorandum is experienced before being exported. The fear of Grexit aims to bring down the French resistance, neither more nor less
Also read the full interview. Yanis Varoufakis: “The real target of Dr. Schäuble is France and its welfare state “
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