Greece's prime minister vowed Saturday not to back down in his "battle" with the country's creditors, in line with his election promise to abandon austerity and avoid a third bailout. "The battle will continue," Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras told the central committee of his hard-left Syriza party. "Anybody thinking that we are going to go away will be disappointed."
Tsipras said that in the talks that landed Greece a four-month extension to its 240-billion-euro ($270-billion) bailout Tuesday, the pressure from other European countries "had the character of blackmail". "Conservative forces (in Europe) tried to set a trap for us, to drive us into budgetary asphyxia," the 40-year-old said. "We will not retreat from the difficulties or from our own principles."
Syriza swept to power in January on a promise to ease the hardship caused by past government spending cuts imposed in return for the eurozone country's two bailouts in 2010 and 2012. Tsipras reiterated Friday that once the current bailout expires on June 30 there would be no "third memorandum" as the previous agreements tying aid to spending cuts are known. "Memorandums are finished," he said.
Is it unclear however whether Tsipras can avoid another rescue package. His self-declared "government of social salvation" faces a major challenge in keeping both voters and Greece's international creditors happy by providing relief for the poor while also keeping government spending in check. Tsipras has said he wants to renegotiate the country's 320-billion-euro debt pile, despite fierce opposition, particularly in Germany, to any new debt "haircut".
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