Yanis’ taped comments on Greek debt cause uproar in Germany

German daily Bild featured the comments on the front page and urged the European leaders to stop providing Greece with further financial support.

Greek Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis’ statements, in a documentary about the Greek debt, which was aired in Germany on Monday, generated a strong negative reaction by much of the German media.

The documentary aired on the same day as a Eurogroup meeting meeting in Brussels.

According to Reuters, Varoufakis describes Greece as the most bankrupt country in the world, claiming that European leaders knew all along that Athens would never repay its debts.

“Clever people in Brussels, in Frankfurt and in Berlin knew back in May 2010 that Greece would never pay back its debts. But they acted as if Greece wasn’t bankrupt, as if it just didn’t have enough liquidity,” he bluntly said, adding that “in this position, to give the most bankrupt of any state the biggest credit line in history, like third-class corrupt bankers, was a crime against humanity.”

Those words caused a stir in Germany and many local media outlets commented negatively on the Greek FinMin’s statements.

German daily Bild, in particular, featured the comments on the front page and urged European leaders to stop providing Greece with further financial support.