Nigel Farage has warned that Greece is on the verge of revolution, amid fears Athens will default on its debts.

Speaking in his characteristically confrontational style, he told MEPs on Tuesday that if he were Greek he would join in the violent protests against the imposition of austerity measures.

"Puppet Papademos is in place, and as Athens caught fire on Sunday night he rather took my breath away - he said violence and destruction have no place in a democratic country," Farage said.

"What democratic country? He's not even a democratically elected prime minister."

Lucas Papademos, a former European Central Bank vice-president, was appointed prime minister in November by the Greek president and was tasked with securing a eurozone bail out.

"Greece isn't a democracy now it's run through a troika, three foreign officials that fly into Athens airport and tell the the Greeks what they can and can't do," Farage said.

"The violence and destruction you saw on Sunday is being caused directly because people are having their democratic rights taken from them, what else can they do?" he asked.

"If I was a Greek citizen I'd be out there trying to bring down this monstrosity that has been put upon those people."

Farage warned MEPs that Greece was being "driven into the ground" by the public spending cuts demanded by other the eurozone countries. "I think frankly when it comes to chaos you ain't seen nothing yet," he added.

"These politics are riving Greece towards a revolution, they need to set free, if they don't get the Drachma back you will be responsible for something truly horrible."

The British MEP is used to making controversial remarks in the European Parliament. He has previously dismissed Belgium as a "non-country" and said EU president Herman Van Rompuy had "the charisma of a damp rag" and the appearance of a "low-grade bank clerk"