Ambassador Alexandra Papadopoulou
Ambassador of Greece to the United States
ALEXANDRA PAPADOPOULOU is the Ambassador of Greece to the United States, having presented her credentials to President Trump on February 7, 2020. After receiving degrees in law and political science from the University of Athens, and subsequent Master’s Degree in International Relations & International Law from the University of Pennsylvania, she became a member of the negotiation team for U.S. military bases in Greece in 1984. She then held a position in the Department of North American Affairs in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Afterwards, she served in the following capacities during her distinguished foreign service career: Consul & First Secretary of Greece in New Orleans, 1987-1991; First Secretary of Embassy of Greece, Amman, Jordan, 1991-1994; Second Counsellor, First Counsellor, and eventually Consul-General of Greece in Toronto, 1994-1999 Head of the UN Affairs desk in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, 1999-2000; Head of the Greek Liaison Office, Pristina, Kosovo, 2000; Department of Balkan Affairs & Deputy Director, Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Deputy Permanent Representative of Greece to the United Nations, 2002-2006; Ambassador of Greece to the United Nations, 2006-2007; Head of the Greek Liaison Office, Skopje, 2007-2012; Director General for European Affairs, in charge of the Greek Presidency of the EU, 2013-2014; Permanent Representative of Greece to the European Union, Sept. 2014-Oct. 2015; Ambassador of Greece to Uruguay & Paraguay Dec. 2015-Aug. 2016; Head of the European Union Rule of Law Mission (EULEX) in Kosovo, Sept. 2016-July 2019; and Head of the Diplomatic Cabinet of the Prime Minister, July 2019-Feb. 2020. In addition to Greek, Ambassador Papadopoulou speaks English and French fluently.
Ambassador Marios Lysiotis
Ambassador of Cyprus to the United States
MARIOS LYSIOTIS is the Ambassador of the Republic of Cyprus to the United States, serving in this current post since September, 2018. After completing his education at the Institu d’Etudes Politiques, one of France’s most prestigious institutions, he began his career at the Cypriot House of Representatives, providing international relations services. He joined the foreign service in 1991, and immediately became a diplomatic adviser to the President of the Republic of Cyprus, serving in this position until 1993. He proceeded to work in the Office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs in 1993, and from 1994-1997, he held a position in the Embassy of the Republic of Cyprus in Sweden. Between 1994-1997, Lysiotis was part of a Permanent Delegation of the Republic of Cyprus in Brussels, and then, building upon that experience, was appointed by the government of Cyprus as Permanent Representative of the Republic of Cyprus to the Council of Europe between 2004-2006. He proceeded to serve in the following positions: Deputy Director of the Diplomatic Office of the President of the Republic (European Affairs), 2006-2008, Ambassador of the Republic of Cyprus to Austria, 2008-2011, Ambassador of the Republic of Cyprus to France & Permanent Delegate to UNESCO, 2011-2016, and Diplomatic Advisor to the Minister of Defense, 2016-2018.He has also received the honors of Grande Medaille du merite de la Republique d’Autriche and Grand Officier de l’’Ordre National du merite, Republique Francaise. He also speaks Greek, English, and French fluently. He is married to Eleni Michaelidou-Lysiotou, and has a daughter, Sophia. In his free time, he reads and collects books.
Nick Larigakis
President of AHI
NICK LARIGAKIS has held different positions with the AHI since joining the organization in 1987. He received his B.A. in Political Science from the College of New Jersey, and did post graduate work in International Affairs at the American University in Washington, DC. For his work in support of Hellenism, Mr. Larigakis has been honored with the 1995 Hermes Expo International Award, the 2007 Hellenic News of America Award, the 2008 Society of the Argonauts Award, and by the Greek Independence Day Committee of Tarpon Springs, FL, where he served as Honorary Grand Marshall of the 2001 and 2009 parades. Other recognitions include an honorary award from the Hellenic National Defense General Staff. He is a member of AHEPA, and received the Inaugural AHEPA Outstanding Public Advocacy Award (April 2012). During the 2004 Olympic Games he served as a volunteer. In 2003, Mr. Larigakis was invested as an Archon of the Ecumenical Patriarchate. As of the fall of 2013, he was appointed to the Board of Trustees of the American Community Schools of Athens and serves on the Board of Trustees of the Diabetes Research & Wellness Foundation USA. In 2015, he received the St. Katherine Community Service Award in Falls Church, Virginia.