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"Europe is at a crossroads. Following the serious concessions made by the Greek government the decision is now not in the hands of the institutions that, with the exception of the European Commission, are not elected by, and accountable to, the people, but rather in the hands of Europe's leaders."

"The issue of Greece does not only concern Greece. It is the epicentre of conflict between two diametrically opposing strategies concerning the future of European unification."

"Some want to agree that the institutions should appoint the ministers and prime ministers and that citizens should be deprived of the right to vote until the completion of the programme. This means the complete abolition of democracy in Europe, the end of every pretext of democracy and the beginning of disintegration and of an unacceptable division of United Europe. This means the beginning of the creation of a technocratic monstrosity that will lead to a Europe entirely alien to its founding principles."

These are three paragraphs of the article by Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras in yesterday's issue of the French daily Le Monde, with which he has provoked a series of negative reactions in leading European and global media.

Bild, Bloomberg, the Financial Times and other leading media are commenting that with this, the Greek Prime Minister has intensified his rhetoric even further and set new obstacles to reaching an agreement between Athens and its creditors.

According to Forbes, the probability of Greek default has increased following the article by Alexis Tsipras. "Essentially, he has gone public with the complaints that have been the basic SYRIZA negotiating position all along," journalist Tim Worstall states, adding, "Tsipras is therefore restating as his own red lines things that he knows, or at least should by now understand, that the other side considers to be, their own red lines. This is not making a deal look any more likely."

The headline in the German tabloid Bild is explicit, "Tsipras shifts responsibility on others." In the text, the newspaper is particularly critical of the Greek Prime Minister who "instead of assuming responsibility for the situation in the country, is shifting it on the creditors."

Bloomberg states "Greece Warning as Endgame Nears." "Tsipras wrote in Le Monde that any intransigence was not the fault of the Greeks. A senior German lawmaker said it was down to Greece to adhere to reforms agreed before Tsipras took power," as also stated in the text.

The assessment of the American information network CNBC is that the gap between the Greek government and its creditors continues to be profound. In an interview with the media, analyst Jim Reid of Deutsche Bank states, "Tsipras’ words are a defiant stance against the creditors. All outcome paths still remain open in what is still a critical week... Expect headlines to only intensify as we move towards Friday."

Peter Spiegel of the Financial Times is particularly sceptical about the likelihood of an agreement being reached after the article by Alexis Tsipras in the French daily newspaper. The same is the opinion of Business Insider whereas the British newspaper The Telegraph believes that the Greek Prime Minister is threatening to provoke a crisis in Europe.