Former Greek prime minister Alexis Tsipras has given his first interview to a Greek media outlet since 2023, speaking to Efimerida ton Syntakton ahead of the publication of his new book. In the wide-ranging conversation, Tsipras reflects on his time in office, his resignation, and the state of Greek politics, while sharply criticizing the current government of Kyriakos Mitsotakis.
Tsipras argues that Greece needs a new wave of collective civic action to escape what he calls the country’s “toxic stagnation.” “Only the action of the many can become the driving force of a path toward progress, away from today’s toxic mire,” he says, adding that this is where he intends to focus his energy. “With an old passport, no one will cross into the new era — all that will continue is the stagnation and impunity of the establishment.”
Asked about his political outlook, Tsipras rejects any return to the backroom politics that have characterized Greek governance for decades. “No dealings, no backroom games, no effort that reproduces worn-out practices. My decision is to stand in the baptismal font of society itself, trusting in the power of the people,” he declares.
Looking back on his years in power, Tsipras insists his government left Greece in a far stronger position than it found it. “In 2015, we indeed inherited a pariah state, internationally discredited. By 2019, we handed over a Greece free of memoranda and supervision, with restructured debt, tens of billions in public reserves, twelve consecutive quarters of growth, and a strengthened international position in the Balkans and Europe,” he says.
Turning to the present, Tsipras accuses Prime Minister Mitsotakis and his New Democracy party of perpetuating corruption and distorting the truth about Greece’s recent history. “Kyriakos Mitsotakis and his party — together with their fellow travelers and sponsors of corruption, those responsible for this national tragedy — were shouting ‘Hold strong, Jeroen’ and ‘Stay firm, Schäuble’ while we were fighting for the salvation of the country. And yet they persist in murdering the truth, without the slightest shame.
Tsipras concludes with a warning that the current political climate is untenable. “It cannot go on like this,” he says. “The government has built a regime of corruption, with a prime minister acting as an oligarch.”
