(MENAFN- AFP) The leader of Greece's anti-austerity Syriza party says he is preparing for a "major confrontation" with the country's international creditors if he wins Sunday's general election.
In a defiant final campaign speech on Thursday, Alexis Tsipras signalled that the eurozone, fresh from being boosted by a massive ECB stimulus announcement, was heading for a new face-off with Greece.
"We are fully aware that from Monday, we are taking on a difficult task," Tsipras told tens of thousands of supporters in Athens.
"The path we have chosen requires determination, conviction and resolution to face a major confrontation," he said.
"With a Syriza government, Greece will renegotiate its onerous and unsustainable debt firmly."
The European Union, the European Central Bank and the International Monetary Fund are concerned at Tsipras' pledge to renegotiate its debt which stands at 318 billion euros ($357 billion).
Some analysts fear it could end with Greece leaving the eurozone.
Two days before voting, some polls give Syriza a projected lead of more than five percent over its conservative rivals, New Democracy.
New Democracy's leader, Prime Minister Antonis Samaras, looks set to be punished at the ballot box for imposing the deep spending cuts demanded by the IMF and the EU in return for a huge bailout.
Tsipras, 40, said once his party was in power "there is no way we will accept the representatives of Mrs Merkel bringing her points of view".
German Chancellor Angela Merkel is seen by Greeks as taking the hardest line on budgetary rigour in the eurozone.
In an attempt to show that Greece is not alone in kicking back against austerity, Tsipras was joined on stage by Pablo Iglesias, the leader of Spain's anti-austerity Podemos party.
- 'Wind of change' -
After a warm embrace between the two leaders, Iglesias said: "A wind of democratic change is blowing over Greece. In Greece, this change is called Syriza. In Spain, it's called Podemos."
In response to Tsipras's speech, Merkel said Friday she wanted Greece to stick with the euro.
"At the heart of our principles lies solidarity. I want Greece, despite the difficulties, to remain part of our story," she said at a press conference in Florence with Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi.
Renzi said he was confident that all of the EU member nations would work with whoever wins the Greek election "with great willingness."
The Greek stock market surged up almost six percent in early trading on the back of the ECB's 1.14-trillion-euro ($1.15-trillion) bond-buying plans.
Samaras said that if Greeks turn away from austerity and elect Syriza, they would miss out on the injection of new funds.
"Europe has opened its wallet... it's important, when the wallet is opening, that we are not left holding an umbrella when it's raining money," he told ANT1 TV.
The IMF on Thursday downplayed the possibility that Greece would exit the eurozone even if Syriza is elected.
"We do not see 'Grexit' as a possible outcome," IMF spokesman Bill Murray said.
The IMF has been a partner with the European Union in a multi-million euro financial rescue of Greece since 2010.
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