JOURNALIST: Greece has assumed the Presidency of the EU while it remains highly dependent on European assistance and is developing strong anti-European sentiment. How do you plan to meet this challenge?
VENIZELOS: We have the experience of four previous EU Presidencies, and we have to make the distinction between national priorities and European interersts. The skepticism to which you refer is not just a Greek, it is a widespread phenomenon. During these six months, we want to effect Greece’s change of course towards the status of a regular EU member state.
JOURNALIST: Isn’t it a little early to talk about a return to regularity?
VENIZELOS: On the level of numbers and economic outlooks, Greece is doing very well. Following an economic adjustment unprecedented in the western world, in 2013 we achieved a structural primary surplus (a primary surplus not including the cost of the debt) of 6.5% of GDP – better than that of Singapore.
The international private sector perceived the change from the outset: It invested in the recapitalization of the banks, as well as in privatizations. Having experienced a crisis longer in duration than the Second World War, with a recession equivalent to 27% of our economy – during which the average citizen lost 35% of their purchasing power – we think that we have paid an extremely high price, both economically and politically. Now it is time for us to move into the next phase: that of exiting the crisis.
JOURNALIST: Are you waiting for a gesture from Europe to dampen the rise of extremists?
VENIZELOS: The parties that have made a commitment to the country’s recovery have suffered repercussions in Greek public opinion – especially the Greek socialist party, Pasok. We were faced with an historic dilemma: the possible solutions within the European framework, or a disorderly default. The alternative would clearly have been insupportable. But Greek society sees what it is living through and can’t compare that to what was avoided. What is certain is that we cannot impose additional measures. But we can continue the measures for our return to competitiveness.
JOURNALIST: Might this be a way of asking for a new reduction in the debt?
VENIZELOS: No, we are not asking for that. Greece can fulfil its obligations. The private sector granted us a voluntary haircut of €130 billion in 2012, without the European citizen paying a single euro for Greece. What we want is a conversation about the parameters of the debt – interest rates, duration, the structuring of how the debt is paid off. Our relationship with the EU and the member states is not commercial – it is first and foremost political. What concerns our partners is that their capital be returned, not that they get rich off of Greece. If the Eurozone is prepared to offer a haircut of the debt, we accept that solution. But we are realists.
JOURNALIST: Is there fear of social turmoil?
VENIZELOS: The measures we took to put our fiscal house in order had the collateral effect of exacerbating the recession and the social crisis. The climate is pessimistic – there is a kind of national melancholy in Greece. Our first goal is to improve conditions for our fellow citizens. There are very serious inequalities that we can now start confronting. We are in a position to restore certain vital services, like social security for the unemployed.
JOURNALIST: Do you fear the proliferation of violent incidents, like the recent terrorist attack on the German Ambassador.
VENIZELOS: There is a diffuse political force, a social tension, that always takes on violent characteristics. This is different from terrorism. In Greece we have both. Nevertheless, the terrorist groups of the extreme left are very marginal.
JOURNALIST: Can the coalition that is in power take the shock? You have only a three-seat majority.
VENIZELOS: Three seats is a good majority. It isn’t a matter of numbers, but the legitimization of orientations. The rise of Syriza is limited, with a ceiling of 19-20%. I don’t see Syriza taking power. What is true, on the other hand, is that Pasok was the big victim of the crisis. We agreed to govern, to make difficult decisions, and thus we lost contact with the social forces. In spite of this, the progressive ideological current continues to exist, and we will work to rally it. There are always risks in parliamentary life. Nevertheless, the way we chose to move ahead is the only existing national strategy.
January 16, 2014