Why did Alexis Tsipras oppose Greece's bailout agreements before becoming prime minister?

Alexis Tsipras opposed the bailout agreements primarily because he was a vocal critic of the austerity measures mandated by the "troika"—the European Union, European Central Bank, and International Monetary Fund—in response to the euro-zone debt crisis that began in 2009–10.12

As the leader of the Coalition of the Radical Left (Syriza), Tsipras specifically decried the government-mandated cuts to public services and the widespread layoffs that were central requirements of the bailout programs. He argued that these policies were detrimental to the Greek people, and his political rise was driven by a wave of popular opposition to these conditions, which he promised to renegotiate upon taking office.12