At the age of 84, the former PASOK government minister Theodoros Pangalos “passed away”. The news of his death became known through a post by his family on Twitter.

“Our beloved Theodoros Pangalos left us today, peacefully at home, with his family and close associates by his side. Have a good trip our beloved. We will always remember you with love,” his family’s post emphasized.

Who was Theodoros Pangalos

He studied Law at the University of Athens and Economics (Doctor of Economic Sciences) at the University of Paris I (Pantheon Sorbonne) with a scholarship from the French Government.

With significant activity in the student movement and a founding member of the Lambrakis Youth, he played an active role in the anti-dictatorship struggle as a result of which he was stripped of his Greek citizenship by the junta in 1968.

From 1969 to 1978 he worked at the Sorbonne as an Appointed Teacher and Researcher in economic development, planning and spatial planning. He was also the Director of the Institute of Economic Development of the same University. In 1981 he was elected for the first time as a Member of Parliament with PASOK, a position he held continuously until 2012.

He was Deputy Minister of Trade (1982), Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs for European Community Affairs (1984), Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs (1985-1989). During the period 1989 to 1993 he was appointed Representative of the Greek Parliament to the Council of Europe.

In October 1993 he was again sworn in as Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs. In July 1994 he assumed the position of Minister of Transport and Communications. In January 1996, he was sworn in as Minister of Foreign Affairs, performing his duties until February 1999.

In April 2000 he was sworn in as Minister of Culture, holding the office until November 2000. He was Head of the Greek Delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Western European Union and the Council of Europe.

In June 2003, PASOK’s representative was appointed to the Foreign Policy Council. In November 2004 he was appointed Coordinator of the pre-election campaign of PASOK. He was re-elected as a member of the Political Council of PASOK and was appointed responsible for the Sector of Development, Competitiveness and Consumer Policy. He then assumed responsibility for the Department of Self-Government, Public Administration and Justice, while he headed the critical Department of Foreign Policy, Security and Defense.

In September 2006, he assumed the position of General Rapporteur of PASOK in the procedures for the Constitutional Review. From 2004 to the 2009 elections, he represented the Greek Parliament in the Parliamentary Assembly of the Western European Union and the Council of Europe. On October 6, 2009, he was sworn in as Deputy Prime Minister. He held office until May 2012.

He was the author of many articles and various books, among which stand out “Globalization and the Left” (2001), “Ephemeral Prophets – Impasses of Neoliberalism and Social Movements in the Age of Globalization” (2005), “Europe at a Crossroads” (2005), “Intervention in Current Affairs” (1994) and “Greece in the European Community” (1988). He was married to Christina Christofakis and father of five children.