I do not like to bring up politics but this is an exception for a lot of reasons. First, because I am concerned about the path Greece is on and second, because I want to bring to your attention opinions of foreign officials as they are described by Mr. Michalis Ignatiou, an – according to the Greek media – informed and objective Greek journalist in the U.S. capital.
Mr. Michalis Ignatiou, the permanent correspondent of several Greek media in Washington and a person with a lot of connections in the US capital, writes an article on the recent reactions in Greece after the announcement by Troika of the 50 Billion Euros privatization plan the government agreed with its foreign lenders. It is important when a person like Mr. Ignatiou, who spends all his time in Washington, describes how the Greek ministers and prime minister are perceived by their foreign counterparts, after 10 months of common life with Troika. The article is in Greek and can be found here, however, I attempt to translate a few key observations of Mr. Ignatiou.
Mr. Ignatiou states, that a source of his reassures him, that the decision to announce the privatization plan of 50 billion Euros was taken at the highest level, i.e. between Mr. Strauss Kahn the head of the IMF and Mr. Papandreou, the Greek prime minister. This point is coming together with the opinions of foreign officials about the deterioration of the economic conditions in Greece since Greece entered into the IMF program. Mr. Ignatiou again states that according to foreign officials – his sources – prime minister Papandreou is now seen as the reason of this deterioration. He says that the same person that in the beginning of the IMF involvement in Greece, was considered as the person who can push Greece forward, now is seen as the source of the problem. After a year of interacting with him, they realize that his objectives have changed, and he has become more concerned about prolonging his political career in Greece, rather than pushing forward hard reforms. On the other hand, they view the minister of economy, Mr. Papaconstantinou, as the one who strongly believes that without this program Greece will not survive, and as the only one in the Greek government who firmly pushes for the necessary actions.
Mr. Ignatiou, towards the end of his article, in an attempt to decipher the changed attitude of the prime minister, reminds the Greek people and the prime minister, that if Greece does not pay back the debts it has created with the IMF-EE-ECB consortium, its lenders have rights over the public property. A note that a lot seem to forget in Greece and which can bring Greece in a much more difficult position than the one it was before the IMF involvement.
