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Every leader wants to put his or her imprint on the work that they do, and grow up in specific eras.
George Papandreou -
We in Europe have great capacities.
George Papandreou
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I never thought about becoming a politician. But during the military dictatorship, my grandfather was put in prison six times and my father twice. If my family and my country didn't have this history, I might be a professor somewhere today.
George Papandreou -
Today I want to send a message of optismism to all Greeks. Our road, our path, will be more stabilised. Our country will be in a better situation. We will be stronger.
George Papandreou -
My hope is that we will turn Greece into maybe the most transparent country in the world with everything on the web.
George Papandreou -
As long as I feel I am doing what I think is right and just for my country, for the Greek people, that is enough for me. Saving Greece from this crisis was the first thing on the agenda. We are now on a much more normalised road.
George Papandreou -
I would say we are a friend in need and I am sure that the Greek people would very much welcome the choice of the British people to come and enjoy Greece, first of all, but also that would be a sign of support.
George Papandreou -
We are on a difficult course, on a new Odyssey for Greece, but we know the road to Ithaca and have charted the waters.
George Papandreou
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Very often, people will come out and say, 'Greeks aren't doing things, Greeks aren't making changes, there's no reform,' That is hogwash. We have made a huge effort. The Greek people have made a huge effort.
George Papandreou -
Despite the deep reforms we are making, traders and speculators have forced interest rates on Greek bonds to record highs.
George Papandreou -
Greece has given Europe the opportunity to fix a defect in the euro zone, that is the fact that we did not have a fiscal union. Now steps have been taken to begin that process. And there is more solidarity from nation to nation, and that is a good thing. That has been Greece's gift to Europe.
George Papandreou -
When I was growing up in the United States and Sweden, I never thought about becoming a politician.
George Papandreou -
The Marshall Plan was after destruction, and the U.S. came to our help and obviously this was very, very important for the future of Europe. I think now we have all the capabilities of doing it on our own and, in a sense, we have to.
George Papandreou -
The structures in Europe in a globalising economy need to be modernised, need to be more integrated, need to be stronger.
George Papandreou
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First of all, Greece won't go down. We're talking about a country that is capable of making change. Europe will not allow the destabilization of the 27-country euro zone. But if there were no action, then markets would start becoming jittery about other countries - and not only Spain and Portugal, but other countries in the European Union.
George Papandreou -
We stand united, facing the big responsibility to change our country into a nation of justice, solidarity, humanity and green development.
George Papandreou -
If you put all the European countries together, we are the biggest economy in the world.
George Papandreou -
I have always said I will be in politics to serve as best as I can and it will take me wherever it will take me.
George Papandreou -
Europe has a lot of strength. We need to pool that strength, and I am very much in favour of that - more of a deeper political union.
George Papandreou -
There is this concept of politics as a dirty game. It's a difficult game, but it doesn't have to be dirty. I think this is what we need to bring to politics. I think politics around the world has very often been captured by big interests - 'lobbies' they call them in the States.
George Papandreou
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Greece's history in the drachma was an up-and-down history, a roller coaster.
George Papandreou -
The real problem in Greece is not cutting taxes, it's making sure that we don't have tax evasion.
George Papandreou -
Previous governments, particularly the one before I took over, mismanaged the economy quite badly.
George Papandreou -
We are a country with great potential. We have the political will to make deep changes in a just and equitable way, to put our country back on a development path, to meet the challenges of a new world.
George Papandreou