Editorial: Captive

The prime minister startled many in January, 2015, with his decision to establish his government in a coalition with the Independent Greeks party.

He surprised far fewer people in September of that year, when he renewed his trust in his coalition partner. It had become clear by then, that he had found a natural ally in the person of Independent Greeks leader Panos Kammenos, and that what united them organically was greater than any ideological differences between them.

Today, it is clear that the prime minister’s coalition partner has evolved into a major problem, as many predicted from the start.

Today, the prime minister is struggling to grapple with problems that he cannot control, but which instead are determined either by his partner’s personal agenda or, even worse, by the immodesty of members of his own party.

In 2015, the prime minister’s choice was based on an erroneous, or half-erroneous assessment. He believed that a partnership with the Independent Greeks, a nationalist and populist party, would untie his hands to clash with Greece’s creditors.

However, he ignored the fact that at some point, especially after the end of self-delusion, that party would carve out its own paths to survival, that it would move forward with its own political culture.

Today, the prime minister’s hands are tied. No one can know if he would have made the same choice today. One can imagine, however, what it means for him to ply forward as a captive.