Merkel Reveals What Really Happened Behind the Scenes of the Greek Debt Crisis

In a rare and candid public appearance at the Stavros Niarchos Foundation Cultural Center in Athens on Wednesday, former German Chancellor Angela Merkel offered deep insights into some of the most critical moments of her political career,

Speaking with journalist Alexis Papachelas before a full audience, Merkel recounted behind-the-scenes moments that shaped the fate of Greece and, by extension, the European Union. When asked about the prospect of a Grexit during the height of the Eurozone crisis, she revealed she was in constant communication with her then-Finance Minister Wolfgang Schäuble, updating him every two hours. Despite Schäuble’s strong support for Greece’s exit from the euro, Merkel remained firm in her opposition. “We are a union,” she said. “We have taken on responsibilities and cannot go backwards.” She acknowledged the intense political tension her stance created, particularly with Schäuble, but maintained that in 2011, the priority had to be doing everything possible to keep Greece within the eurozone.

Merkel admitted that part of the difficulty stemmed from flawed economic data and uncertainty about how to proceed. She noted that the International Monetary Fund, known for its tough, independent approach, had already been approached by Greece—though its involvement was initially rejected. Even so, she knew the road ahead for the country would be extremely difficult.

At the same time, Merkel addressed the broader concerns that plagued Europe during that period, including the fragility of banks and a lack of trust in institutions. She also acknowledged the existence of corruption—“not just in Greece,” she said, “but including German companies operating there.” Rejecting national stereotypes, she stressed that diligence and laziness exist everywhere, not just in specific countries.

She admitted to playing the “bad cop” role during the crisis and said she was well aware of her unpopularity in Greece. Schäuble, she claimed, had made no secret of his desire to see Greece out of the EU, while she herself supported a debt restructuring. “I believed a haircut was necessary,” she said, though this view was not shared by then-French President Nicolas Sarkozy or European Central Bank head Jean-Claude Trichet. Ultimately, the EU settled on a voluntary debt reduction—an approach still debated today. Merkel recalled being told she was “crazy” for advocating the move. “It was a risky process,” she admitted.

In a moment that broke from her usually composed public image, Merkel recounted bursting into tears during a summit at Camp David. The disagreement at the time involved U.S. President Barack Obama and the issue of economic stimulus. She explained that Obama didn’t fully grasp that the European Central Bank is institutionally independent, unlike the U.S. Federal Reserve. “A woman crying at a summit—what a mess,” she joked, but the memory highlighted the emotional and psychological weight of those years.

Reflecting on her early interactions with Alexis Tsipras, Merkel said their first meeting in Brussels was unremarkable, but things evolved gradually. When she invited the Greek prime minister to Berlin, he first stopped to greet protesters outside the chancellery. Merkel recalled that their early relationship was cautious, but she eventually came to view him as sincere. “I never had the feeling that Tsipras tried to mislead me. He was honest,” she said.
The most dramatic moment, she recalled, came when Tsipras informed her about the referendum. “It was the most shocking phone call of my political career,” Merkel said. When she asked what recommendation he would give to voters, he replied, “No.” She was stunned. “I lost my voice,” she admitted, adding that then-French President François Hollande, who was present, turned to her and asked, “And now?”

Discussing the refugee crisis, Merkel said the situation in Greece had become dire. She felt a moral and political obligation to act, which included initiating negotiations with Turkey. That resulted in the controversial EU-Turkey deal, which offered Ankara financial aid in exchange for stemming migration flows. “I had to talk to Erdoğan, and I don’t regret it,” she said. Acknowledging tensions between Greece and Turkey, she noted that Germany frequently tried to mediate, even if talks with Erdoğan were “not easy” and often unsuccessful. Still, she said, they worked to make use of even the narrowest diplomatic openings.

Turning to Russia, Merkel offered a sobering assessment of her dealings with Vladimir Putin. She described a fundamental difference in worldview: for her, the end of the Cold War was a moment of joy; for Putin, one of loss. She argued that Putin's desire to exert influence over Ukraine had been evident as early as 2005. Their relationship soured definitively after the 2014 annexation of Crimea, during which, she said, Putin lied to her on two occasions. “Everything changed after that,” she said, adding that she now has no contact with him whatsoever.

Merkel also revisited the notorious 2007 meeting in Sochi where Putin brought his dog to a meeting, despite being informed of her fear of dogs following a childhood bite. She claimed the Kremlin was fully aware of her phobia, making the gesture seem deliberate. “Putin says he didn’t know, but that’s not true,” she stated.

Her memories of Donald Trump painted a picture of a leader driven by spectacle. “For Trump, everything is about making deals, but the world doesn’t work that way,” she said. While he wasn’t openly aggressive toward her, she noted his penchant for seeking attention. During a visit to the Oval Office, she extended her hand and asked for a handshake. “He didn’t take it,” she said, suggesting he wanted to dominate the optics of the moment.

Merkel was particularly critical of what she called a “troubling trend” in U.S. foreign policy: the notion that support for allies depends on full ideological alignment. “That’s a real threat to democracy,” she said, calling on European nations to remain united in facing challenges such as trade tariffs and rising defense expenditures. She insisted that NATO’s demands for increased defense spending were actually in Europe’s own interest.

On the subject of modern Greece, Merkel said she believes the country has now emerged from the long shadow of the crisis, even if not all citizens have yet felt the change. She emphasized the need for wage increases and pointed to the housing crisis exacerbated by platforms like Airbnb. Asked whether she would apologize to Greeks today, Merkel demurred. Instead, she said, “We achieved a lot. I can’t imagine the EU without Greece.” She praised the resilience of Greek society during the crisis years and said she often wondered whether Germans would have withstood similar hardships. “You are a strong and admirable people,” she concluded, “from whom we have much to learn.”

As for her life after politics, Merkel described her retirement as a welcome change. “Sixteen years as chancellor is a very long time. It’s right that others now carry the responsibility,” she said. Writing her memoirs has helped her process the experience, and she is now enjoying the simple pleasures of everyday life: going to the theater, spending time with friends, and walking around her small property in Berlin. “I don’t miss anything,” she said with a smile, closing a chapter on a political career that profoundly shaped modern Europe.