Cyprus' former president Tassos Papadopoulos died of lung cancer Friday at the age of 74, the Nicosia General Hospital announced.
Papadopoulos, a longtime chain smoker, was admitted to the intensive care unit of the hospital on November 22. He was suffering from lower back pain and acute respiratory failure, and was later diagnosed with small cell lung cancer.
Papadopoulos was born in Nicosia in January 1934. He studied law in London and later came back to Cyprus to join the struggle for independence against British colonial rule in the 1950s.
Papadopoulos became a cabinet minister at the age of 25 following Cyprus' independence, and was elected president of the republic in February 2003 for a five-year term, during which Cyprus became a full member of the European Union and entered the eurozone.
Widely viewed as a nationalist hardliner, Papadopoulos persuaded Greek Cypriots to reject a United Nations-brokered plan for a solution to the Cyprus problem in April 2004, arguing that the plan would lead to no real reunification of the Mediterranean island, but to a permanent division. As a result, only the Greek Cypriot south effectively entered the EU.
Papadopoulos failed in his bid for a second term earlier this year and was replaced in February by Demetris Christofias, who is more flexible and pro-solution. Comprehensive reunification talks with the Turkish Cypriot leadership have been re-launched under the new presidency.
Papadopoulos leaves behind his wife and four children
Source:Xinhua
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