The general assumption at face value when it comes to the repayment of debt is that, eventually countries pay up and are free from indebtedness. While this is true principle, it is quite different from what is in practice. Here's why;
In reality, the facts on the ground are different. When the debt matures, the country never pays off the principal debt, instead the government borrows new debt to pay off the old debt. This is why debt will realistically never be paid off because the modern financial system is designed as a perpetual debt maintenance mechanism. Some countries believe that even a large country like the United States cannot escape debt because the concept is considered to be able to maintain continuity or keep the wheels of the economy running without having to resort to extreme budget tightening.
So the main priority is not repayment, but rather management and maintaining creditor trust. Debt is considered to function as a liquidity instrument that funds the country's growth and operations, not as a short-term loan that must be repaid until it reaches zero.
What this means is that, inflation is may become politically preferred to austerity, changing the long term meaning of currency preservation.
Inflation is used as a political tool to reduce the real burden of debt over time. This is the reason why governments often allow inflation to occur because inflation inherently reduces the real value of a country's debt over time, making it a hidden tax that is preferred by policymakers in a country.
In fact, what makes the people suffer is the state itself because the governance and economic policies implemented do not favor the welfare of the people.