ABSTRACT
This chapter reconstructs the development of the Greek crisis with a focus on the debates and actions of the Eurogroup. The crisis was marked by some national specificities that made it a particularly severe case, yet it followed the general pattern of uneven development in the EMU. The Greek crisis is selected as a case on which to examine the Eurogroup’s general approach to national adjustment programs and its underlying mode of decision-making. This chapter highlights that the management of the Greek crisis was almost exclusively negotiated within the Eurogroup, the EWG and the troika, meaning that it was easier to control for outside influences. The chapter covers main events and decisions that led up to the conflict between Syriza and its creditors in early 2015, including the negotiation of the first and second adjustment program as well as Private Sector Involvement, the conflict with the IMF over debt restructuring, and the Eurogroup’s decision to drop Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras. Overall, the chapter highlights the centrality of the Greek crisis for the austerity project.
