Greek Government Allies Agree on Little Beyond Battling Bailout

Just about the only thing that binds Greece's new leader Alexis Tsipras with his new government ally Panos Kammenos is an aversion to the country's tough economic bailout terms.

Both believe Greece should write off its huge debt and roll back some of the policy prescriptions of its 240 billion euro ($270 billion) financial aid package from international lenders.

They both want Greece to grab back economic and political sovereignty lost over the past five years - but on most other issues, they stand far apart.

Syriza leader Tsipras, 40, is a left-wing politician who wants children born to immigrants to automatically get Greek citizenship. He asked to be sworn in as prime minister not on a Bible, as is tradition, but in a non-religious ceremony.

Kammenos, the 49-year-old head of the small right-wing Independent Greeks party, is a political and social conservative who wants less immigration and believes the Orthodox Church should play a bigger role in national politics.

He was decorated with France's prestigious Legion of Honour by former center French President Nicolas Sarkozy for his help in the fight against terrorism.

"The aim is that Greeks move to a new day in unity, respecting the national sovereignty of the country, democracy and the constitution," the father-of-five said after joining forces with Tsipras on Monday.

That politicians with such disparate political beliefs would come together in government underscores the level of Greek voter discontent with the past five years of economic policies dictated by the International Monetary Fund and Berlin.

It is also likely to raise the temperature in future negotiations with Greece's international lenders.

Tsipras had toyed with the idea of making new centrist party To Potami the government's coalition partner. But To Potami's rhetoric is far more conciliatory towards Greece's international lenders and is decidedly pro-European. In Kammenos, Tsipras has an ally that supports a hardline stance in Brussels.

'BLACKMAILING WILL BE OVER'

Kammenos has played a quiet but sometimes defining role in Greek politics over the past decade. As a longtime member of New Democracy, Greece's outgoing center party, Kammenosserved as deputy minister of marine affairs between 2007 and 2009.

During that time, he helped negotiate a landmark deal under which China's port operator Cosco would manage and upgrade two of Greece's busy Piraeus port's cargo piers.

But in 2012, he and 20 other lawmakers were kicked out of the party by outgoing Prime Minister Antonis Samaras after they voted against a bout of tax hikes and cuts in spending.

The expulsion boosted Kammenos' popularity; he founded the Independent Greeks party and immediately ranked fourth in that year's elections.

During those elections, he campaigned on a platform to punish Greece's creditors, whom he blamed for the country's economic suffering. He also favors setting a cap on immigrant inflows, in addition to deporting and repatriating illegal migrants.

In December, Kammenos was instrumental in triggering the sequence of events that broughtGreece to Sunday's elections.

The 12 Independent Greek lawmakers voted against Samaras' government in a parliamentary vote to choose the country's new head of state. The inability of Samaras to push his candidate through effectively felled his government.

In this recent campaign, one of Kammenos' battle cries has been the protection of Greek homes from foreclosures. Greece's six-year recession has cost many people their homes, but a moratorium on home foreclosures expired in December last year, under pressure from Greece's international lenders.

"No homes in the hands of bankers. Hang up on collection companies and tell them they will be finished on Jan. 25, the blackmailing will be over," Kammenos said during a recent campaign speech.

Despite past differences, Kammenos on Monday played up his camaraderie with Tsipras: visiting Greece's new leader to discuss their alliance, he shed his usual suit and tie look and sported an open-shirt look, Syriza-style.