Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras conceded defeat in a nationally televised address on Sunday night by stressing that “I am handing over a country” in the European Union and the euro zone.

A grim-looking Samaras first began by saying that the “Greek people have spoken, and we all respect its decision.”

He added that he had a clear conscience, before waxing poetic: “I inherited a country on the brink of disaster, they asked me to handle burning charcoals, which I did”.

Samaras cited the elimination of budget deficits, a return to growth in the second half of 2014 and what he called placing the “foundations for growth and an exit from the crisis” as his government’s main achievements.

In a bid to qualify his party’s defeat, the outgoing premier said his government had been obliged to take painful measures in order to “prevent even more ominous” developments.

“Therefore, today I leave a country without deficits, with security, and one exiting the crisis, and above all, I leave a country that is a member of the European Union and the euro… For the good of the land and the people, I express my hope that the next government retains these gains.”