The conservative New Democracy (ND) leadership and main opposition Radical Left Coalition (SYRIZA) party have stepped up their efforts to woo undecided voters just days before the national elections on January 25. France’s National Front (NF) extreme right leader Marine Le Pen made a surprising statement of support for SYRIZA in an interview with “Le Monde” newspaper.

Ms. Le Pen underlined that France’s extreme right supports a coalition of the left in Greece because she agrees that the people should take over and oppose EU totaliarianism. She said that she did not support SYRIZA’s entire program, especailly concerning migration, but she added that she’d be happy if SYRIZA wins as this victory would contribute to an increase of euroskeptics.

ND and the socialist PASOK coalition used the opportunity to stress that there were contradictions in the SYRIZA party’s policies and stress that the party belongs to the camp of euroskeptics despite its own claims of support for European membership.

In his own article in the Financial Times, SYRIZA leader Alexis Tsipras writes: “We must end austerity so as not to let fear kill democracy. Unless the forces of progress and democracy change Europe, it will be Marine Le Pen and her far-right allies that change it for us.”

On his part, Mr. Samaras told an audience of supporters on Tuesday that “we’re not going to turn into a soviet here, communism isn’t going to win out.”

“They (SYRIZA) will let 14 airports (privatized over the past two years) die out; they don’t like Cosco. On the other hand, Mr. Tsipras wants to bring the intelligence service (EYP), the tax crimes squad (SDOE) and the civil servants hiring directorate (ASEP) directly under the prime minister’s office; these things aren’t done even in communist countries,” said Mr. Samaras, referring, among others, to Cosco — the Chinese multinational that holds the concession for the port of Piraeus container terminal. The latter is amongst the most successful privatizations in the country.