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Title: The Greek Paradox: Promise Vs. Performance (BCSIA Studies in International Security) by Graham T. Allison, Kalypso Nicolaïdis ISBN: 0-262-51092-8 Publisher: MIT Press Pub. Date: 07 January, 1997 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $21.00

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Average Customer Rating: 5 (1 review)

Rating: 5
Summary: Greek politics, economy, diplomacy, and other troubled areas
Comment: These fifteen essays show you what can happen when a bunch of first-rate minds get together and express their findings in a single volume. Dynamite. No fluff, no filler. Just hard facts about modern Greece, razor-sharp analysis, and reasonable conclusions, mostly following rigid scientific procedures and a few based on anecdotal, impressionistic material. This means that we are dealing with a publication away from which those who wax romantically ecstatic at the mention of Greece should stay.

The paradox mentioned in the title refers to the unfortunate gap between Greece’s many endowments (democratic government, strategic geographic position, economic potential) and the way the country has failed to make the most of its gifts (top-heavy bureaucracy, feckless foreign policy, economic disequilibrium).

By way of introduction to the volume, Kalypso Nicolaidis starts off on a note of controlled optimism by asking if there really is a Greek paradox, a gap between promise and performance. Viewing the present moment as a window of opportunity for Greece that calls for analysis, introspection, vision, and leadership, she briefly shows how these elements are woven into the other articles.

In an article dealing with political issues, Nikoforos Diamandouros declares that the paradox (potential in contrast to achievement) is indeed real. He suggests that a comparison between the period from the 1950s to the 1970s and that from the mid 1970s to the present is essential to grasping the “logics” that might explain the disappointment characterizing the latter period.

The article by Misha Glenny was written in 1995 when the situation in the northern Balkans was “uncertain” and “troubled”. Glenny points out the absolute importance of Greek diplomatic initiatives and bilateral treaties as a means of maintaining peace and economic growth. He discusses the ineptitude of some Greek diplomatic maneuvers and the general unpreparedness of the foreign ministry for changes in the structure of Soviet and Yugoslav power.

Dimitris Keridis writes that the Greek economy is badly in need of structural reforms that cannot be carried out unless there are parallel efforts to get rid of a pervasive “political culture based on populism and clientelism” (read, alternatively, corruption and cronyism.) His analysis is informed and his conclusions strengthened by consideration of five distinct historical developments that have contributed to Greece’s current status as an economic underperformer in the European Union. Starting off with the underlying principle that states are supposed to “tax fairly to provide their citizens with a maximum of physical and a minimum of economic security and equal opportunities,” he identifies pressures in support of reform along with three specific areas at which reformist undertakings might effectively be directed: decentralization of policymaking; encouragement of accountability, hierarchy, and meritocracy in public administration; an increase in the independence and accountability of such institutions as the courts, the central bank, the universities, public utilities, and state companies; a strengthening of the civic dimension of Greek citizenship to include separation of church and state.

Further recommendations and suggestions for improving the economy and political leadership are put forth in the article by Basilios E. Tsingos. Greece could do a lot to enhance its diplomatic capital among the nations of the West, principally by abandoning it current belief that the world owes the Greeks a living (because of their historical contributions to the development of Western culture). This requires a shift from the language of “entitlement” to the idiom of “present-day interests.” The entire thrust of Greek foreign policy should be shifted away from the East and toward the West. The nation should make stronger efforts at image-building in the West. (Endowing a few chairs of Hellenic studies at Western universities would not be a bad idea.) Reform of the electoral system is indicated to render the central government stronger and more effective. This would involve doing away with the current system of “proportional representation.” And finally, private initiative should be encouraged and government entrepreneurial involvement diminished.

Alexis Papahelas also takes up the theme of structural reform in politics and economics and mentions the deep-seated cynicism and inertia that characterize contemporary Greek society. He proposes the establishment of an independent, privately funded foundation made up of homeland Greeks as well as members of the Diaspora. This would serve as a think tank to analyze all aspects of public life and make recommendations to government and other public institutions.

In his contribution (Chapter 9), F. Stephen Larabee examines five issues touching on Greece’s potential as a leader among the nations of the Balkan Peninsula. Susan L. Woodward also considers Greece in its Balkan context and points out some lessons that have been, or should have been learned from the wars in Yugoslavia.

In the concluding essay Loukas Tsoukalis offers a “subjective interpretation” of the Greek paradox. He follows the logic of the whole undertaking by saying that prescription should follow diagnosis but tries to steer clear of writing a political manifesto. He continues with the reformist agenda and zeroes in on politics, economics and foreign relations as areas of public life that need serious attention. His “prescriptions” are well worth careful study.

This book is an indispensable work for anyone interested in modern Greece, and it could well serve as an important work of reference. Highly recommended