It's almost time for the reckoning. And the paradox is that it will probably be the party that is defeated by the popular vote that will make everyone agree. Evangelos Venizelos, leader of the socialist Pasok party which saw a drop from 44% in the 2009 elections to 13% last Sunday, is the third party leader trying to bring the different political forces together, after the intent of the conservative Antonis Samaras (108 seats in Parliament) and the radical Alexi Tsipras (52 seats).
Yesterday Venizelos had the ok from Fotis Kouvelisnumber one on the Democratic Left (19 seats). Kouvelis is in favor of staying in the euro but has asked that austerity measures be gradually abandoned over the next three years "to improve the conditions of the Greek people and not make them worse". Today Venizelos will meet Samaras. In the event of a yes from New Democracy, thanks to Pasok's 41 seats, there would be enough numbers to form a pro-European executive.
The results of Sunday's vote clearly showed the anger of the Greek electorate towards the austerity measures agreed with the Troika (EU, ECB and IMF). For their part, the European institutions have been clear: “We want Greece to stay in the euro. But the country must also want it and respect its commitments ", said the German finance minister Wolfgang Schaeuble. The president of the European Commission, Josè Manuel Barroso was tougher: "If a member of the club does not respect the rules, it is better for him to leave the club".
