'Germans Won't Pay for Greece's Vacation from Reality'

Spiegel
May 8, 2012

Greece's election has brought a political sea change to the country, after bitter voters hammered established parties for supporting austerity measures in exchange for international bailouts. As Athens veers towards political chaos, German editorialists predict hard times ahead.

Greece appears to be sinking ever further into a political quagmire after a first push to form a new coalition government failed on Monday, just one day after outraged voters chastened the parties that have supported the country's bailout and austerity measures.

Sunday's election results revealed clear anti-austerity sentiments from voters, who toppled the two main parties that have dominated Greek politics for some four decades, the conservative New Democracy and socialist PASOK. Instead, many Greeks voted for smaller, more extreme, parties that oppose the strict requirements levied by the European Union and International Monetary Fund in exchange for bailouts.

Observers believe there is little chance of any of the parties being able to put together a viable coalition government, meaning that new elections may become necessary.

After New Democracy, which came in first with just 18.8 percent of the vote, failed in its attempt to form a coalition on Monday, the baton was handed to the second-placed Radical Left Coalition on Tuesday. The left-wing, anti-austerity party will have three days to come up with a power-sharing deal.

The risk that they, too, might fail, along with the new popularity of the unconventional parties, has sparked alarm on financial markets and among the country's creditors, who have urged Athens to maintain agreements made in exchange for aid.

"Of course the most important thing is that the programs we agreed with Greece are continued," German Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Monday.

According to European Commission spokesman Amadeu Altafaj Tardio, solidarity with Greece is a "two-way street," and the country must strive for "full and timely implementation" of its agreement with creditors.

Meanwhile Greece's financial situation continues to deteriorate. In its fifth year of recession, with unemployment over 20 percent, the country has agreed to implement tough new austerity measures in June. It is also scheduled to receive its next tranche of aid in May, which the IMF is already threatening not to pay. But without that money, Greece may have to default on its debts and possibly leave the euro zone.

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