Ministry of Foreign Affairs statement on the passing of Eugene Rossides

We express our profound grief and deepest emotions at the passing of Eugene Rossides, one of the most emblematic figures of the Greek diaspora.

Eugene (Gene) Rossides was a prominent member of the Greek American community and leaves behind a very important scientific and political legacy. He was the first Greek American to assume a government office, serving as  Assistant Secretary of the U.S. Treasury Department from 1969 to 1973, and was the founder and first President of the American Hellenic Institute.

Throughout his life, he selflessly offered his invaluable services to Hellenism, for which he received major international honours. He was a key supporter of the Cypriot people’s struggle for freedom, defending the rights of Cyprus in the efforts towards a viable solution to the Cyprus problem following the Turkish invasion in 1974. His loss is a blow to the global Greek community.

The political leadership and the personnel of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs express their sincere condolences to the family and loved ones of Eugene Rossides and to the American Hellenic Institute on the loss of its founder.