Greece: Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis announces his resignation

Fox News & WSJ | Greece

Credit: via WSJ

Greek Finance Minister, Yanis Varoufakis today announced his resignation after his country men and woman overwhelmingly voted a `NO' at Sunday's Referendum and EU Ministers would rather not have him in further negotiations.

According to Fox News said Yanis Varoufakis announced his resignation after the `no' vote on bailout proposal, in order to help with further negotiations expected to take place to help Greece remain within EU.

The World Street Journal reports that the Minister, known for his tough stance to the negotiations and in fact was at some point considered the main obstacle to progress, "kept up to his defiant stance even as he acknowledged he was stepping aside to smooth negotiations."

Sunday's referendum became the first `vote of confidence' by Greeks on their Prime Minister since his election to the role earlier this year. And comes after 61% of Greeks showed their solidarity with their new Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras by piling behind him and listening to his advice to reject the proposals by voting "NO".

But according to a report by the World Street Journal, Yanis Varoufakis said he was leaving to ease the negotiations for the sake of his country and insisted he would “wear the creditors’ loathing with pride.”

More than 61% of Greeks voted “no” in Sunday’s referendum on austerity measures and other overhauls that European and International Monetary Fund officials had demanded.

The outcome spurred popular celebrations into the night across downtown Athens and other Greek cities, but threatens to deepen the rift between Greece and the rest of Europe and push the country closer to bankruptcy and an exit from the euro.

Since becoming finance minister with the left-wing Syriza-led government at the end of January, Mr. Varoufakis has caused great irritation among his colleagues in the eurozone, repeatedly lecturing them on the failure of the region’s economic policies.

Emotional: Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis,
sits on the floor of the House as the Greek
financial crisis showed no sign of an early end.
(Credit: via WSJ)

But his resignation was induced by the EU Ministers and according to WSJ, Mr. Varoufakis said in a statement that after the announcement of the referendum results he was told that some eurozone finance ministers asked that he not appear at meetings, an idea that the prime minister “judged to be potentially helpful to him in reaching an agreement.”

The Motor cycle loving Minister said: ”I consider it my duty to help Alexis Tsipras exploit, as he sees fit, the capital that the Greek people granted us through yesterday’s referendum. And I shall wear the creditors’ loathing with pride,” 

* by Benson Agoha: (with contributions from Fox News & WSJ)