Greece anti-bailout leader Tsipras made prime minister

Alexis Tsipras smiles after being sworn in as prime minister

Alexis Tsipras smiles after being sworn in as prime minister

The head of Greece’s far-left Syriza party, Alexis Tsipras, has been sworn in as prime minister and is set to lead an anti-austerity coalition government.

Turning up for the ceremony without a tie, the leftist took the oath less than 24 hours after winning the general election on an anti-austerity platform.

Earlier, he formed a coalition with the centre-right Greek Independents.

European Commission head Jean-Claude Juncker has reminded him of the need to “ensure fiscal responsibility”.

Congratulating Mr Tsipras on his election win, Mr Juncker said in a tweet: “The European Commission stands ready to continue assisting Greece in achieving these goals.” He also referred to “promoting sustainable jobs and growth”.

The BBC’s full coverage of the reaction can be found here.

The Syriza leader has vowed to renegotiate the bailouts, which are worth €240bn (£179bn; $268bn).

Eurozone finance ministers are meeting in Brussels to consider how to deal with the new government in Greece, which replaces the conservative-led coalition headed by Antonis Samaras.

The euro recovered from an 11-year low against the US dollar as investors digested what Syriza’s victory meant for the eurozone’s future. Europe’s main share markets also rose – after initial falls – on hopes that a compromise over Greece’s bailout terms might be found.

It is likely that investors believe reason will prevail, and Berlin will sanction a write-off of Greece’s excessive debts, BBC economics editor Robert Peston reports.

BBC

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

*