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Within his recently unveiled autobiography, named Ithaki, the former premier Tsipras does not hold back as he revisits that turbulent era during Greece's financial crisis.

An Unconventional Appointment

According to Tsipras's version, he selected that maverick academic Varoufakis as the finance minister largely because of the latter's worldwide fame along with his very persuasive skills when it came to communicator.

“In reality, he was, truthfully, more like a star and less of an economist,” stated Tsipras.

Conflicting Priorities

The former leader alleges that his finance chief had his own motives that included advancing his publications as well as experimenting with his economic models using the nation rather than genuinely advocating the country's financial survival.

Tsipras noted that those negotiations to prevent insolvency became “not just a way to secure a better deal for the country. They were a test, a monumental opportunity to demonstrate the truth of his economic theories.”

High-Stakes Talks

During rollercoaster negotiations, the country found itself perilously close to leaving the eurozone.

At stake was not only the country's future and the punishing cutbacks demanded in return for rescue loans from international creditors.

Unsuccessful Alternatives

Efforts to find financing elsewhere, such as a desperate appeal to Russia to buy Greek government bonds, fell on stony ground.

Assisting the indebted country was equivalent to tossing cash in the trash-can, Putin reportedly informed his Greek counterpart in Moscow.

Public Vote and U-Turn

That summer, those punitive conditions were subjected to a public vote, an action which threw Europe into deeper existential crisis.

Although the vote was won decisively by those who opposed the cuts, the prime minister was forced but to reject its outcome and agree to a rescue deal from creditors which proved to be tougher.

Breaking Point

The ex-PM claimed how he began to doubt his finance minister relatively soon.

“He was the public image of negotiation, the man who drew publicity, who graced the front pages of magazines the world over … it seemed he was enjoying the spotlight.”

When the minister proposed a contingency plan that included creating a secondary currency and distributing vouchers to pensioners, Tsipras said he realised it was game over questioning Varoufakis: “Are you serious?”

Lasting Criticism

Within the book, the author asserts how Varoufakis demonstrated himself “unsuitable for an agreement that required complex and delicate management.”

Tsipras also claimed how his confrontational approach made him increasingly isolated among peers, endangered the country, while assisted hawks who were advocating a Greek exit from the euro.

This account of events has been met with anger and stunned disbelief in some quarters, while the former minister has so far kept a conspicuous quiet on the matter.