Venizelos calls for an unbreakable front

“The troika has historically been wrong with its estimates”

A clear message to the opposition party to stop fueling controversy within the country’s political scene, and to contribute to a climate of consensus, until the negotiations with the Troika are complete, was sent by vice-president of the government Evangelos Venizelos.

Speaking after his meeting with Prime Minister Samaras, Mr. Venizelos admitted that the “negotiations are complex” since, as he said “we are forming the new page”.

He also, however, stated that “we will not back down on anything”, as far as the constant pressures by lenders.

As he clarified, “we, (the government), must serve the best interests of Greek society and social cohesion”. “Our partners are disbelieving, even though they accept the impressive results of the Greek economy, due to the political and social clime”.

At this point, he addressed SYRIZA, “highlighting” the opposition party when he said that “the situation on the interior is barren, unproductive and makes negotiations tougher”.

He stated, “Our partners wish that the eurozone does not slip back into recession and that the IMF furthers its role in the eurozone” and underlined that “this game is tough and very exact. We must create conditions of a united, unbreakable front; the opposition must stand up to the call of the times, at the level of maturity and responsibility needed”.

“It is not a usual process”, he explained. “This is the last phase. We will not back down on anything”.

When asked whether there is a specific subject which the Troika seems to be having a problem with, Mr. Venizelos answered: “We want a unified treatment. We will not ask civilians to sacrifice any more. We say no to more austerity measures”.

When asked on the troika’s estimates on the fiscal gap, he said that the troika has failed repeatedly in its estimates of the financial gap, primary surplus or growth rates.

He also underlined that all economy indexes are on the rise and that this will start to show in Greek society.