Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras on Sunday dismissed the possibility of snap elections in the still crisis-battered east Mediterranean country, speaking at a customary press conference held on the sidelines of an annual trade exhibition in Thessaloniki.
Tsipras, the protagonist in three separate ballots held in 2015 – two snap general elections and a controversial referendum on creditors’ conditions at the time – said the country “does not (now) need elections, it needs stability”.
He also referred to the country as an “oasis of stability” in a wider region rife with instability, saying Greece is headed towards an exit from the economic crisis based on a “road map” he presented a day earlier.
The annual Thessaloniki International Fair (TIF) is a venue for an unofficial “state-of-the-economy” speech by successive Greek leaders, whereas in past decades, before the economic crisis, it was associated with promises of spending hikes aimed at specific social groups.
Tsipras echoed his top economic team in forecasting that the Greek economy will post “significant growth” in 2017, while adding, in a note of caution, that this future growth’s sustainability will depend on negotiations between the IMF and EU. The “negotiations” in this case refer to whatever debt relief measures are finalized for Greece in the coming period. Athens’ public sector is now partially funded by institutional creditors loans, via a third bailout since 2011 – the third negotiated, signed and implemented by the current leftist government.
He appeared optimistic, in response to press questions, over pending measures for debt relief, citing previous Eurogroup decisions. In a direct reference to Berlin’s standing opposition to debt relief before the current Greek program is finished in 2018, he said the issue of Greece’s debt “sustainability” cannot be linked with the result of elections in other European countries.
Nevertheless, he emphasized that the issue is not one of “conflict with Germany”, but instead entails an “international dimension, given that the problem (Greek debt) plays a decisive role in the development of the European economy, which in turn affects the global economy.”
“Germany’s reasoning is that rules must be followed … We are following them, but our partners must follow them, too; this is what we’ll tell the Germans.”
