Athens, March 17 (RHC)-- Greek Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras says Athens will not accept any return to austerity, as the last five years of the policies have led to an unprecedented recession, a human crisis and record unemployment. Tsipras made the remarks on Monday in an interview with the Greek daily Ethnos.

The Greek prime minister added that he was convinced a deal will be reached with international creditors - the European Union (EU), the European Central Bank (ECB), and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) -- to receive a new tranche of bailout money.

Tsipras’ Syriza Party won the Greek general elections in early January on the promise that it would renegotiate the terms of the country’s bailout program with its international lenders. However, the new leftist government has faced opposition from its creditors, who have repeatedly said they want the new Greek government to meet the commitments agreed to by the former center-right administration in return for the bailout.