Greece's debt was sustainable until the financial crisis.
However, when they joined the EU, many of their indigenous industries weren't competitive with other nations', so they 'specialized' in tourism. This brought in lots of income, but after the financial crisis, the tourists dried up, leaving them with a massive deficit. And of course, their debt ratio went up because of the contraction in revenues.
This is why Greece feels betrayed - they were spending more or less on par with other European nations prior to the financial crisis, but they were basically screwed by the cabal of European politicians and banks, who imposed absurd, punitive measures (which shrank the economy) in exchange for a 'bailout' (which was essentially more debt, on unfavourable terms).
Greece's debt seemed sustainable partly because official statistics were manipulated. Then, along with financial crisis, came more scrutiny.
The crisis was a trigger, but not a reason. Public spending in Greece was beyond what it could really afford; when skewed statistics were exposed, it turned out that the actual deficit was 12.7 % instead of 6 % - and this change came in about a month.
However, when they joined the EU, many of their indigenous industries weren't competitive with other nations', so they 'specialized' in tourism. This brought in lots of income, but after the financial crisis, the tourists dried up, leaving them with a massive deficit. And of course, their debt ratio went up because of the contraction in revenues.
This is why Greece feels betrayed - they were spending more or less on par with other European nations prior to the financial crisis, but they were basically screwed by the cabal of European politicians and banks, who imposed absurd, punitive measures (which shrank the economy) in exchange for a 'bailout' (which was essentially more debt, on unfavourable terms).