MADRID--A top Spanish government official Monday rejected
comparisons between Greece's Syriza, the victorious left-wing party
in Sunday's general election, and a rising radical leftist party in
Spain.
Syriza's victory in Greece's election this weekend the result of
unparalleled "political turmoil" in the country following a
European Union bailout, said Industry Minister José Manuel
Soria.
"It must be clear that the situation in Greece is very unlike
that of other European countries, especially Spain," Mr. Soria told
state-owned TV network TVE.
"Greece lost control of its own destiny years ago, when [former]
Socialist Prime Minister (George) Papandreou showed himself unable
to face systemic imbalances and asked for a bailout," Mr. Soria
said. "That is precisely what we avoided in Spain."
Greek voters handed power to Syriza in a general election Sunday
that was widely seen as a popular rebellion against austerity
policies and fellow European countries that prescribed it.
With nearly all votes counted, opposition party Syriza was on
track to win about half the seats in Parliament. In the early hours
of the morning, it clinched a coalition deal with a small
right-wing party also opposed to Europe's economic policy to give
the two a clear majority.
In Spain, Syriza's win resonates particularly because of the
recent rise of Podemos, a party that has copied much of Syriza's
political platform, and was the most prominent foreign supporter of
Syriza during the recent election campaign. Podemos is also in the
lead in some opinion polls in Spain.
Mr. Soria conceded Monday that, despite the differences between
the two countries, Syriza and Podemos are similar parties with
shared radical recipes.
He also criticized Socialist Party and opposition leader Pedro
Sánchez, who has tried to move the party to the left while staying
away from open antiausterity statements, noting that the collapse
of the center-left in Greece left the door open for Syriza's
ascent.
"If the Socialists try to emulate the radicals, it is very
likely that these radical left parties will win that battle against
them," Mr. Soria said.
Write to David Roman at david.roman@wsj.com
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