George Papandreou Quotes

When I was growing up in the United States and Sweden, I never thought about becoming a politician.

You can theorise about the options you have but in reality they are very specific.

The real problem in Greece is not cutting taxes, it’s making sure that we don’t have tax evasion.

But sovereign debt is a wider question not only in Europe but across the globe. While every country is a unique case, I think it’s not an issue of countries acting on their own. We need a more coordinated strategy not only in Europe but around the world.

The unemployed in Greece can get a voucher and choose a training program somewhere in Europe to be retrained during this crisis and when this crisis is over, we make sure that that person hasn’t fallen off the cliff and can come back into the labor market with new skills to find a job.

There is this concept of politics as a dirty game.

There are certain moments in the history of a nation when the choices made define the decades to come.

The structures in Europe in a globalising economy need to be modernised, need to be more integrated, need to be stronger.

Very often, people will come out and say, ‘Greeks aren’t doing things, Greeks aren’t making changes, there’s no reform,’ That is hogwash. We have made a huge effort. The Greek people have made a huge effort.

The Greek people do not want to exit the euro. And I believe the Greek people already have shown that they have made major sacrifices to stay in the euro zone.

Every leader wants to put his or her imprint on the work that they do, and grow up in specific eras.

The fact that we’re going through a crisis is an opportunity for Europe to be more coordinated and more integrated. We’re actually talking about a European Monetary Fund or euro bonds, about guarantees for countries, about economic governance in the European Union. That shows the strength of Europe.

Markets are saying pretty much what I’m saying too: that Greece is doing what it can, but that Greece is not going to be able to carry the weight of all of Europe and the other problems that Europe has.

How can a parliamentarian or a leader in a country say, on the one hand, that we’re going to support Greece but at the same time say that Greeks are lazy?

If you put all the European countries together, we are the biggest economy in the world.

Greece has great strengths, but much of this potential has been wasted. That’s because of a wider political system, but also because of a lack of an institutional framework.

Politics also means educating people. It’s important to speak openly with our fellow Greeks, to tell them what our problems are and that we have to change something.

Unfortunately, corruption is widespread in government agencies and public enterprises. Our political system promotes nepotism and wasting money. This has undermined our legal system and confidence in the functioning of the state. One of the consequences is that many citizens don’t pay their taxes.

In ancient Greece, politics and the market were not decoupled.

I think there is a heritage which I’m proud of, which is a fight for democracy, a fight for social justice, a fight for freedom. My grandfather went to jail or exile six times in his life, fighting for his principles for democracy, or for his country. And my father twice.

I would like to see Greece as a case study, an opportunity for Europe to strengthen its coordination of fiscal policy.

We stand united, facing the big responsibility to change our country into a nation of justice, solidarity, humanity and green development.

Europe has a lot of strength. We need to pool that strength, and I am very much in favour of that – more of a deeper political union.

Many people have been pontificating, and patronizing, and moralizing, and scapegoating, saying you Greeks, you are the problem. I would say we Greeks have a problem. We are not the problem.

I have always said I will be in politics to serve as best as I can and it will take me wherever it will take me.

Previous governments, particularly the one before I took over, mismanaged the economy quite badly.

At times of distress, we all like to recall the advice of fathers and mothers. The best advice my father gave me was to keep faith and deep confidence in the potential of the Greek people; nurture the belief that they can do things.

We have made major reforms in Greece. When I took over after a landslide victory we had a mandate for change and I knew my major focus would be re-organizing the state.

I never thought of politics as a profession.

Despite the deep reforms we are making, traders and speculators have forced interest rates on Greek bonds to record highs.

Greece has given Europe the opportunity to fix a defect in the euro zone, that is the fact that we did not have a fiscal union. Now steps have been taken to begin that process. And there is more solidarity from nation to nation, and that is a good thing. That has been Greece’s gift to Europe.

As long as I feel I am doing what I think is right and just for my country, for the Greek people, that is enough for me. Saving Greece from this crisis was the first thing on the agenda. We are now on a much more normalised road.

Already people are saying we do need a change.

People would say you look weak if you’re not cursing the opposition and driving around in a big black car while always wearing a tie. Above all, to be ‘strong’ you’re always supposed to be giving orders.

I have a deep sense of responsibility to my country and Greek people.

I will always be upfront with the Greek people, so we can solve the country’s problems together.

My hope is that we will turn Greece into maybe the most transparent country in the world with everything on the web.

Countries are not like financial markets. Social change cannot be executed as swiftly as credit-default swaps. You cannot sell short on social commitments and practical responsibilities.

I would say we are a friend in need and I am sure that the Greek people would very much welcome the choice of the British people to come and enjoy Greece, first of all, but also that would be a sign of support.

The Marshall Plan was after destruction, and the U.S. came to our help and obviously this was very, very important for the future of Europe. I think now we have all the capabilities of doing it on our own and, in a sense, we have to.

If Greece had gone through a very normal political life, I may have not been in politics. But just the fact that I lived through huge upheavals and very difficult struggles and polarization and the barbarism of dictatorships – that made me feel that we had to change this country.

Everyone needs to carry out his own personal revolution.

If we had a consensus we wouldn’t have to go to a referendum.

The more there is a European solution to a theoretical, but possible, problem in the markets, the less we will have to talk about an I.M.F. solution.

This idea that you’re a successful tough guy if you evade taxes and deceive the state has got to change.