DW-TV: For more we're joined by Albrecht Ritschl, economic history professor at the London School of Economics -and he says that back in the 20th century, no other European country received as much aid as Germany did. So, Professor, is it pay-back time now?
Albrecht Ritschl: That's probably for the Greek thing. I'm not quite sure what they think, but let's say, from a historical vantage point, it is, to some extent.
DW-TV: What do you make of the views expressed in the report we've just watched?
Albrecht Ritschl: It's all very understandable. If people take your money and run, nobody can expect you to be enthusiastic about it, so that's clear. The big question's of course, what to do now, and can we learn for the present crisis from previous ones from history.
DW-TV: At the moment what we can see is a kind of anti-Greece movement going on in Europe - while at the same time, there are angry Greeks protesting on the streets of Athens. Is democracy as we know it in danger right now?
Albrecht Ritschl: I am a little bit worried about it. If one takes a close look, Greece has a complex history. It had a civil war after World War Two. It had a pretty nasty military dictatorship. And it has lots of tensions - polarization. It's not like Western Europe, where all this is a thing long past. It's all still very much there, and it's not quite clear how society - how its institutions will respond to the crisis.
DW-TV: So it's still quite volatile. Nevertheless, we have to deal with the situation right now because a lot of people say, if Greece goes under, the Eurozone goes under, as well. That's why there are these bailout packages, but where did the first tranche end up?
Albrecht Ritschl: Well, probably where it should, and that is, to some extent, in the salary payments and whatever of the Greek ministeries and, to some extent, in the coffers and vaults of European banks, because right now, what we are talking about it not so much giving fresh money to the Greeks, but rather, rolling over existing debt. And if we don't do this, it will mean that Greece cannot really meet its obligations to European banks, and that will cause a bigger crisis in Europe - that's the problem.
DW-TV: OK, let's look at it the other way around and, just briefly, what do you think Greece itself could do and must do in order to out of the doldrums?
Albrecht Ritschl: Well, of course, they must implement reforms; they must try to streamline the economy; they must make sure there is less wasteful spending. But, of course, all this is fraught with social and political conflict. So it's not quite easy to predict what the outcome of all this is going to be.
DW-TV: What do you make of the solar power-idea for Greece?
Albrecht Ritschl: It's a little bit romantic. I mean, this is a very small drop in a very big bucket. What is important in Greece right now, is to get the public sector right, to make sure that it imposes fewer obstacles on the working of entrepreneurs, of markets, of firms. It's important to get the credit sector right, so that credit can flow to the industries where productivity growth is actually possible. And if, in the end, solar power is a part of that success story, fine! But I don't see it as anything that is going to pull us out of this mess, right now.
DW-TV: So, money should flow into industries where productivity is possible, which are, for Greece?
Albrecht Ritschl: We don't know! We will see! This is why we have something called a market system. There are lots of people out there with clever ideas - cleverer than the ideas that I have right now, or that you might have. Who knows? And the important thing in a free market is to find these people, and for money to flow in the right direction. Bureaucrats are notoriously not very good at deciding that.
DW-TV: So, my favorite question: short and brief: will the Greek economy be a success story in our lifetime?
Albrecht Ritschl: It depends. There is an off chance that the lights are going out in Greece right now, and that they won't come back on in our lifetime. But let's be optimistic about this: let's hope that they will sort this out and that the Greek economy will rebound from that, and that it will be a a success story in the end.
DW-TV: Let's hope for the best. Professor Ritschl, thank you very much for being here.