In a desperate bid to rally support, Tsipras sprang a new surprise.61 At one a.m. on the morning of June 27 he went on television to announce that he was calling a referendum. It would be up to the Greek people to decide either to accept or to reject the creditors’ memorandum. Tsipras, for his part, declared that he would campaign against acceptance, calling on the Greek population to reject the “blackmail ultimatum.”62 The Eurogroup was horrified. As Merkel made clear, with the Athens government campaigning against agreement there could be no further compromise.63 The following day, Sunday,
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