Former prime minister and PASOK party leader George Papandreou on Monday dismissed rampant press reports of late claiming a "political flirtation" with ruling SYRIZA.
Speaking on a morning current affairs program on Skai radio, Papandreou was scathing in his response to the speculation:
"Those that previously called us collaborators (with German policy vis-a-vis bailout memorandums, i.e. germanotsoliades), and Pinochets, now consider us as well-dowried brides, because SYRIZA is interested in votes ahead of looming elections," he said.
Moreover, he said SYRIZA, which won the January 2015 general election on a hard left platform emphasizing anti-austerity, anti-bailout and a reversal of previous spending, wage and pension cuts, proved to a be a "conservative political" movement, one that allied itself with a far-right segment of the Greek political spectrum - a reference to Panos Kammenos' small populist Independent Greeks' (AN.EL) party.
Moreover, he flatly denied that SYRIZA approached him with a proposal to support his prospective bid to become a EU Commissioner, saying he's insulted at the mere mention of such a scenario.
Ηe said any discussions with SYRIZA must come after the general election, which he underlined "SYRIZA will lose".
Finally, Papandreou said he will stand as a KINAL party candidate the coming general election in the Achaia (prefecture) district, a traditional political stronghold of the Papandreou family in the northwest Peloponnese.
The KINAL party (Kinima Allagis, or Movement for Change) is the social democrat formation that has mostly coalesced around once-dominant PASOK.
