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Within his freshly published personal account, named Ithaki, the former leader Tsipras does not hold back as he reflects on the chaotic era during Greece's debt drama.

An Unconventional Appointment

In the ex-PM's account, Tsipras chose the maverick academic Varoufakis to be the treasury head mainly due to the latter's international reputation along with his highly compelling abilities when it came to communicator.

“He was, truthfully, more of a celebrity and less of an economist,” recalled the 51-year-old.

Clashing Agendas

Tsipras suggests how his finance chief had a personal motives which involved advancing his books and experimenting with his theories on Greece rather than genuinely fighting for its economic stability.

Tsipras wrote how those negotiations to prevent bankruptcy were “not only a way to secure improved terms for Greece. They were an experiment, an historic chance to prove the truth of his ideas.”

High-Stakes Negotiations

During rollercoaster negotiations, Greece came perilously on the brink of exiting the eurozone.

On the line was not only Greece's destiny and those severe austerity measures demanded in return for rescue loans by international creditors.

Unsuccessful Options

Efforts to secure financing from other sources, such as a desperate appeal to Russia to purchase Greek bonds, fell on stony ground.

Assisting Greece was equivalent to throwing money into the garbage, Putin is reputed to have informed Tsipras during their meeting.

Public Vote Followed by Reversal

That summer, those excoriating conditions were put to a public vote, an action that threw Europe into deeper existential crisis.

Although the vote was carried resoundingly by those who opposed austerity, Tsipras had little option but to reject its outcome then agree to a rescue deal with creditors that turned out to be tougher.

Breaking Point

The ex-PM revealed that he began to doubt his finance minister quite early on.

“He was the face of the talks, the figure who drew media attention, who graced the covers of magazines globally … it seemed he was enjoying the spotlight.”

After the minister proposed a backup strategy involving establishing a parallel currency and issuing vouchers to retirees, the leader said he realised it was the end and asked Varoufakis: “Are you serious?”

Lasting Rebuke

In the memoir, the author asserts how his former ally demonstrated himself to be “unfit for a deal that required intricate and sensitive management.”

Tsipras also wrote that Varoufakis's confrontational approach left him more and more alone with colleagues, put Greece at risk, and assisted hawks that were advocating a Greek exit from the euro.

This retelling of events has provoked fury along with shock among certain groups, while the former minister has so far kept a conspicuous quiet regarding these claims.