The relations of the Vice President Evangelos Venizelos and the Minister of National Defense Dimitris Avramopoulos are not the best and their different approach with regards to the “type 214” submarines controversy indicates how fragile the coalition government is.
The tension was triggered by SYRIZA’s political initiative regarding the submarines, which quickly prompted the reactions of Venizelos and Avramopoulos. As soon as Prime Minister Samaras saw where the conflict was headed, he appealed for calmness. After all, an all-out conflict is going to work against any troika negotiations.
Mr. Avramopoulos’ statement that “if some have not acted ‘under the water’, there would be no problem” and that “the governments are not consistent” was interpreted as a indication that New Democracy will not apologize for matters for which PASOK is responsible.
When Mr. Venizelos was informed of Mr. Avramopoulos’ comments, he headed to Parliament to defend the submarine deal from 2010 which he had introduced and enacted upon. The Vice President responded that “ministers do not exist to describe situations or benefit the opposition, but to provide solutions”.
While senior PASOK officers maintain that the Prime Minister and Vice President are in agreement over the matter, Mr. Avramopoulos’ refusal to make any meaningful retraction in public, indicates that the tension is far from over. Sources from the Ministry of National Defense explained that Mr. Avramopoulos has prioritized public and national interests.
Government spokesman Simos Kedikoglou was recruited to deny rumors that the Prime Minister had dubbed Mr. Avramopoulos’ comments as “unfortunate” and insisted that “Mr. Avramopoulos was not referring to Mr. Venizelos”.
