Patience snaps: YouGov poll shows 60 per cent of Germans now back Grexit
As Greece continues to languish in the economic danger zone, public opinion in the powerhouse of the European economy has shifted.
A majority of the German public – 60 per cent – think a Greek exit from the eurozone would be preferable to the debt-ridden country remaining in the Eurozone. German public opinion has come a long way from a few years ago, when European solidarity and was more highly prized, and Germans were more willing to shell out the cash to keep Greece in the euro.
The election of the radical left wing party Syriza in Greece has intensified feelings on both sides. Many Germans do not want to give further bailouts without significant reforms while Greeks are no longer willing to put up with the burden of austerity.
Germany has not been impressed by Greek demands for reparations for Nazi war crimes committed during the second world war as a way of raising revenue. The Greek justice ministry has gone a step further, warning it may confiscate German property if a resolution isn't found.
While Germany's patience with Greece may be wearing thin, rating agency, Moody's warned Grexit would have “serious consequences” for the Eurozone.
“Even if the immediate financial impact was limited, the exit of a member state from a union explicitly designed to be indivisible would inevitably raise questions about what pressures might cause other countries to take the same route,” said Kathrin Muehlbronner, a senior credit officer at Moody’s.
Greece's Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras has been invited to Berlin to patch up Greco-German relations. Syriza's finance minister Yanis Varoufakis landed in some hot water after a two-year-old Youtube video surfaced of him arguing Greeks should"stick the finger" to Germany and default within the euro.