Mark Weisbrot — Germany is bluffing on Greece

Once we take all these interests into account and where they converge, the strategy of Greece’s European partners is pretty clear: It’s all about regime change. One senior Greek official involved in the negotiations referred to it as a “slow-motion coup d’état.” And those who were paying attention could see this from the beginning. Just 10 days after Syriza was elected, as I noted previously, the European Central Bank cut off its main line of credit to Greece and then capped the amount that Greek banks could lend to the government. All the hype and brinkmanship destabilize the economy, and some of this is an intentional effect of European authorities’ statements and threats. But the direct sabotage of the Greek economy is most important, and it is remarkable that it has gotten so little attention. 

The unannounced objective is to undermine political support for the Syriza government until it falls and get a new regime that is preferable to the European partners and the U.S. This is the only strategy that makes sense, from their point of view. They will try to give Greece enough oxygen to avoid default and exit, which they really don’t want, but not enough for an economic recovery, which they also don’t want....

Precisely. This is not about economics but rather politics and geopolitics at that. Specifically, neoliberal globalization. Neoliberalism is a political theory whose foundation is economic liberalism rather than an en economic position. The propaganda is that freedom and democracy are joined at the hip with capitalism.

The reality is that economic liberalism views democracy as its enemy. While the neoliberal Atlantic alliance cannot be defeated militarily, it can be defeated at the ballot box, and the neoliberal elite realizes that, as the history of regime change and propping up dictators amply demonstrated, as well as being willing to wage war to impose liberalism, which is about as illiberal as it gets.

The neoliberal game plan from the outset at the election of "leftist" Syriza was either to destroy Syriza from the inside by creating dissension in the ranks, discrediting the party with voters, especially their supporters, and finally if that doesn't work to replace the government directly with a neoliberal regime with a coup if necessary, as has been the history of Greek politics.

Real-World Economics Review Blog
Germany is bluffing on Greece
Mark Weisbrot, American economist, columnist and co-director, with Dean Baker, of the Center for Economic and Policy Research in Washington, D.C.