Kyriakos Mitsotakis, head of the opposition party New Democracy claimed that the problem with Mr. Tsipras was not his pre-election promises, but rather his post-election policies.
“Greece needs a government that promotes entrepreneurship and reform. A government able to highlight the comparative advantages of the country and attract foreign investment, ” said Mr. Mitsotakis, in an interview on National Public Radio in the United States.
“I believe that today we do not have such a government,” he added. “The unemployment rate is consistently above 20%. Thousands of talented Greeks are leaving the country in search of better working conditions. The general sentiment in Greece is that we are moving in the wrong direction. This is why are asking for political change. ND is leading in the polls. Our message echoes to the electorate.
“I want to emphasize that, unfortunately, Greece is still in recession. Two years into Mr. Tsipras’s assumption of power, the country is in even worse shape than it was at the end of 2014. Mr. Tsipras spent the first six months of his administration in a high-risk trading with our European partners. Greece was just one step away from having to leave the Eurozone. And at the last moment, literally, he compromised. Since then, too much damage has been done to the country. Mr. Tsipras is trying to come across as a reformer. Personally, I have every reason to doubt his commitment to reforms,” added Mr. Mitsotakis.
On austerity
“Austerity measures have gone too far. Our creditors are responsible, in part. But if we want to convince them to ease up fiscally, we have to honor our commitments. We must proceed with reforms in the economy. To develop it and make it a more efficient public administration.”
New Democracy’s positions
“Our goal is to convince both our creditors and the Greek citizens that the reforms we are proposing are absolutely necessary to make the Greek economy more competitive. We need a more open economy able to attract more tourists, more foreign investment. An economy that is clearly more export-oriented….. Greece needs new jobs. And in order to create them, 100 billion Euros in foreign investments will be required over the next five years.”
On Donald Trump’s victory and Obama’s visit to Greece
“We respect the choice of the American people; Greek-U.S. relations are very strong and we look forward to working with the new administration… He (Obama) has been a friend the last six years that Greece has been undergoing an economic crisis. I am sure that we will find a strong ally in the new US administration as well. I believe that the US policy towards Europe will not change significantly. ”
On Brexit
“We fully respect what the decision of the British people. We want to promote a new relationship with the United Kingdom. We must identify the causes behind the wave of populism in Europe and address why established parties have failed to convince their citizens with their political viewpoints.”
On the refugee issue
“The agreement between the EU and Turkey has significantly reduced the number of refugees and migrants who cross over to Greece and has stressed the importance of enforcing that agreement, as complex and is is…..In such a multi-faceted problem, it is very difficult to expect Greece to have to come up with a solution on its own. Europe’s solidarity has been limited. In practice, few countries have shown willing to accept refugees from Greece. Europe failed to find a common approach to the issue. Greece has shown its humanity in practice. The majority of Greeks welcomed the refugees. It is clear that now our country has reached its outer limits.”
