New Left lawmaker criticizes Tsipras's initiative, questions PASOK's strategy

Euclid Tsakalotos, a lawmaker for New Left, asserted that his party seeks to establish itself as a stable political force with a significant presence in Greece's political landscape. He told ERT that their goal is to develop a program that tackles both the immediate problems faced by citizens and the country's deeper structural challenges.

Addressing Alexis Tsipras's new political endeavor, Tsakalotos clarified, "First of all, it's not a coalition. You don't form a coalition with yourself. If you want to unite the three areas – ecology, social democracy, and radical left – you sit down with people belonging to these groups and collectives and discuss. He is not doing that."

He expressed openness to a dialogue initiative if a concrete proposal emerged. "If Mr. Tsipras says, 'Here I am, I bring these proposals to the table, you as New Left or you as MeRA25 come and let's sit down, find the 8 points that unite us to form a progressive government, to slowly change things.' I wouldn't reject that, but that's not on the table," Tsakalotos added.

Regarding internal party dynamics, Tsakalotos highlighted a contradiction among those who left New Left. "They leave a party because, as they say, they support the popular front and alliances, and they go to a party that says, 'I'm not interested in the popular front or alliances.'" He stressed his desire for cooperation with parties on the left interested in a different, progressive voice. He also pointed out the need for balance, stating, "With 3-5% of GDP spent on armaments, we won't have a welfare state."

Tsakalotos also voiced confusion over PASOK's strategy. "I simply don't understand PASOK's strategy. I understand Mr. Tsipras, I understand the KKE, I understand MeRA25, with all my disagreements, but I don't understand how Mr. Androulakis thought he could win the elections with a one-vote difference. And instead of forming alliances when he was ahead of other parties, he decided to pursue this destructive line," he concluded.