As the world’s attention remains locked on the Greek debt crisis, all kinds of barbed comments have been doing the rounds – particularly since Greek PM Alexis Tsipras complained his country was not getting the same consideration as other bailout nations, namely Portugal and Ireland.
His complaints even suggested EU leaders were plotting to see him ousted from power so that they could eventually deal with a much easier political opponent.
But while Portugal’s PM is remaining zip-lipped, minister for the presidency Luís Marques Mendes has also alluded to political strategy – not this time of EU leaders, but of Tsipras himself.
Calling the comments about Portugal “sour grapes”, he told journalists after yesterday’s council of ministers that Tsipras’ comments came as part of a strategy that could be called “bad taste”, but which basically he “didn’t want to talk about”.
“Let’s see where it goes,” he added, stressing that any decision about the “Greek problem” was a European one. “It is not the individual decision of any country, and certainly not of our country,” he added.
Meantime, the good news today as crisis talks continue is that the IMF will not declare Athens in default if Greece fails to make the 1.8 billion dollar repayment that comes due on Tuesday.
Expresso reports that the country would simply be deemed to be “in arrears”, with time then given for it to pay.
