Former French president Nicolas Sarkozy revisited the 2008 economic crisis and the subsequent beginnings of the Greek sovereign bond crisis, which quickly spiraled out of control the following year, in an interview with Le Monde this week.
“During the Greek crisis Germany did not want a support program … Did you like Lehman? You’ll love Greece,” was the way Sarkozy said he described the situation to German Chancellor Angela Merkel, referring first the Lehman Bros bankruptcy in 2008.
The French conservative said his statement aimed to persuade Merkel that the longer they waited to assist Greece the more costly the support would be.
Sarkozy said the German chancellor at first was apprehensive and distrustful of “preventative” actions.
