"The Recovery Fund's windfall is intended for the industries of the wealthy north," emphasized, in an interview with the newspaper Free Sunday, the President of the ELLADA – THE OTHER WAY Party, Notis Marias, professor at the University of Crete and former Member of the European Parliament.
He went on to point out that, unlike the management of the Marshall Plan Compared to postwar Washington, Berlin is not as adept at managing it Recovery Fund and The Fund’s harsh, Merkel-style operating conditions ultimately leave only crumbs for the local partners of “German Europe” who have signed the memoranda.
In his interview, Notis Marias criticizes the government’s inability to utilize European funds to create new ICU beds and hire permanent medical and nursing staff to address the pandemic.
He notes that Joe Biden’s famous “America is back” simply means The Cold War is back, a development that will lead to pressure from Washington for Athens to fully align itself with U.S. plans, which call for the involvement of the Greek armed forces in NATO operations inborders of Ukraine and particularly in the Black Sea, as he has already made clear in his message on the 25thof In March, the U.S. President.
Referring to the 200th anniversary of the 1821 Revolution against Ottoman rule, he emphasized that the struggle for national independence, popular sovereignty, and social justice continues, as our country is under enhanced surveillance within the EU framework and the creditors have mortgaged public assets through the Superfund until 2114.
Notis Marias then pointed out that despite the government's mistakes, not only in handling the consequences of the pandemic but also in relation to the countering Turkish aggression, especially at a time when the Oruç Reis was running amok for months in the waters of the Greek continental shelf, as opinion polls show The opposition parties are unable to capitalize politically on the government's shortcomings.
And he concluded: «It is obvious that the Greek people are looking for a convincing plan to emerge from the crisis caused by the pandemic—one with clear milestones and a vision for the future. We, as GREECE— THE OTHER WAY—believe that, once the pandemic is over, our country must seek a special relationship within the EU and the eurozone, with specific arrangements and exemptions, so that Greek society can. In this context, we are working to rebuild the Anti-Memorandum Patriotic Democratic Center with the aim of political and electoral cooperation.».
The full text of the interview follows:
«Question: A short while ago, the second preliminary committee for a SYRIZA minister was established. Is this political persecution or the result of the arrogance of the SYRIZA-ANEL governments?;
Answer: Regardless of the actual causes that led to this new clash between the two major political rivals, New Democracy and SYRIZA, the key point is that this clash, too, is not expected to resolve the overarching political issue, namely the manipulation of the media by the government of the day with the aim of completely silencing those who do not comply with its directives—as was the case with our movement, GREECE –THE OTHER WAY, which has been systematically excluded from our country’s media in recent years.
Question: Did the 200th anniversary of the revolution find Greece in a better state?;
Answer: 200 years since the 1821 Revolution against Ottoman rule, the Struggle for National Independence, popular sovereignty, and social justice continues, as our country remains under enhanced surveillance within the EU framework and creditors have mortgaged public assets through the Superfund until 2114.
Question: How successful do you think the response to the pandemic has been?;
Answer: The government fell victim to its own complacency due to its performance during the first phase of the pandemic, with the result that it became complacent and lost valuable time starting in June 2020 and thereafter inutilize European funds to fortify the public health system in preparation for the pandemic. In contrast to Belgium and Portugal, which allocated 7.8 billion euros and 5.9 billion euros, respectively, from the SURE program, the government requested and received only 2.7 billion euros, missing out on significant resources that were essential last summer for creating additional ICU beds and purchasing hospital equipment and the hiring of permanent medical and nursing staff. And only after facing criticism—including from us—did it wake up and manage to secure an additional 2.5 billion euros from the SURE program a few days ago. but in the process, it wasted valuable time. The government also lagged behind Portugal in terms of utilizing other European funds; Portugal had already distributed 100,000 computers for free as early as November, while the Greek Ministry of Education is set to launch the 200-euro voucher for computer purchases in the coming days.
Question: Opinion polls suggest that the opposition's approach is not convincing
Answer: Despite the government's mistakes, not only in handling the consequences of the pandemic but also in relation to the countering Turkish aggression, especially at a time when the Oruç Reis was running amok for months in the waters of the Greek continental shelf, as polls show, the opposition parties are unable to capitalize politically on the government’s shortcomings. This is due to the fact that they are not mounting a serious, policy-based opposition that both highlights the government’s weaknesses and, at the same time, proposes an alternative path to address the enormousnational and economic challenges facing our country. It is obvious that the Greek people are seeking a convincing plan to emerge from the crisis caused by the pandemic, one with clear milestones and a vision for the future. We, as GREECE— THE OTHER WAY — believe that, once the pandemic ends, our country must seek a special relationship within the EU and the eurozone, with specific arrangements and exemptions, so that Greek society can. In this context, we are working to rebuild the Anti-Memorandum Patriotic Democratic Center with the aim of political and electoral cooperation.
Question: What can we expect from the use of Recovery Fund resources?;
Answer: Recovery Fund resources are primarily focused on in the digital economy and green growth, with an emphasis on energy. This means that, in practice, the majority of the grants will go back to the wealthy and industrially developed countries of the North to purchase new technologies, software, artificial intelligence applications, and mechanical equipment such as wind turbines, solar panels, electric cars, electric vehicle charging stations, waste treatment plants, etc.
Therefore, under the Recovery Fund’s operating rules—tailored to Berlin’s specifications—the relevant funds, even though a large portion of them is allocated to the economies of the South, will ultimatelyend up flowing back to the economies of the North, from which the Southern countries will purchase the necessary machinery and technologies for green investments.
Furthermore, according to estimates, the Recovery Fund is also expected to finance foreign direct investment in Greece. For this reason, German and American multinationals have jumped at the chance to siphon off Greek funds from the European Recovery Fund, turning them into «freeloading investors» living off foreign handouts.
Question: Is there good reason to worry that they might suffer the same fate as earlier programs, such as the Marshall Plan?;
Answer: As has already been proven, instead of being used to build vital infrastructure, a large portion of the Marshall Plan funds ended up in the pockets of certain individuals as a reward for dragging Greek society onto the West’s bandwagon. Thus, Washington turned a blind eye to the squandering of American funds, since the local elite was fully committed to the key political objectives of the Cold War at that time. On the other hand, the Recovery Fund’s milestones include compliance with the law Greece’s membership in the eurozone and the implementation of the harsh bailout terms set forth in the Eurogroup’s decision of June 22, 2018, regarding privatizations, changes to the social security system, labor laws, and non-performing loans. However, since Berlin—unlike postwar Washington—is not a “large” player, the harsh “Merkel-style” conditions governing the Recovery Fund ultimately leave Crumbs for the local pro-austerity partners of “German Europe,” with the lion’s share going to the industries of the wealthy North, where the funds allocated to the Greek consumer economy.
Question: What does the escalation of tensions between the U.S. and Russia mean for Greece?;
Answer: Joe Biden’s famous «America is back» simply means “the Cold War is back.” Therefore, as tensions between the U.S.-Russia intensifies, Washington will demand that Athens fully align itself with American plans—a fact that will result in suffocating pressure on the government every time it attempts to step out of the “U.S. orbit.” Furthermore, Washington will certainly demand military facilities—always for free, of course— as well as greater involvement of the Greek armed forces in NATO operations along the Ukrainian border and especially in the Black Sea, as it has already signaled in its message regarding the 25thof In March, the U.S. President.
Question: What impact will the five-party talks on the Cyprus issue have on Greek-Turkish relations?;
Answer: The Cyprus issue has been, is, and will continue to be a catalyst for Greek-Turkish relations. Therefore, as Ankara will seek to establish two states in Cyprus during the five-party talks, a prospect that is unacceptable to Athens and Nicosia, it is obvious that Greek-Turkish relations are expected to become even more strained.».
