TIMES ONLINE: The crisis in the eurozone turned today into an extraordinary duel between Germany, Europe’s largest economy, and Greece, the euro’s weakest link.
A populist campaign in Germany, gathering force before regional elections on May 9, is urging Greece to leave the euro of its own free will rather than place a further burden on its northern partner.
“Why are we paying the luxury pensions of the Greeks?” asked the front-page splash headline of the mass circulation Bild. “If Athens goes broke then German and EU aid will flow into the Greek pension funds.”
German tabloid newspapers have sent teams to the country to hand out old drachma notes and encourage them to abandon the euro. One editorial said Greece had tricked its way into the euro. “With all respect to the oldest democracy in the world: you don’t trust someone who has lied to you once before.”
The Greeks, in turn, are blaming Germany for forcing unacceptably tough conditions on them. Civil servants today became the latest to join the rolling protest against Prime Minister Papandreou’s outstanding measures. Each demonstration lampoons Angela Merkel, the German Chancellor, and bemoans the lack of solidarity from the northern eurozone members. >>> Roger Boyes, Berlin | Tuesday, April 27, 2010
