Quotes by 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.

The fact that were going through a crisis is an opportunity for Europe to be more coordinated and more integrated. Were actually talking about a European Monetary Fund or euro bonds, about guarantees for countries, about economic governance in the European Union. That shows the strength of Europe.

There are certain moments in the history of a nation when the choices made define the decades to come.

Unfortunately, corruption is widespread in government agencies and public enterprises. Our political system promotes nepotism and wasting money. This has undermined our legal system and confidence in the functioning of the state. One of the consequences is that many citizens dont pay their taxes.

I have been supporting the European Union, but we are still a work in progress. We have to become more of a United States of Europe. We should talk about electing a president of the E.U., rather than having one selected from the heads of government.

People would say you look weak if youre not cursing the opposition and driving around in a big black car while always wearing a tie. Above all, to be strong youre always supposed to be giving orders.

First of all, Greece wont go down. Were 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.