Georgios Iakovou

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Georgios Iakovou is a Cypriot activist and politician.

Iakovou was born on July 19, 1938 in the village of Peristeronopigi, Ammochostos province, Cyprus. He studied in London and Boston and went to work in the private business sector. After the Turkish invasion of Cyprus in 1974, Iakovou set up two committees for the relief and care of the 200,000 refugees created by this invasion: the Service for the Relief and Rehabilitation of Displaced Persons and the Service for the Reactivation of the Displaced Persons. His work brought him international recognition and he was appointed to the UN High Commission for refugees in Geneva.

In January, 1979, Iakovou was appointed Ambassador to the Federal Republic of Germany, a position he held until 1983 when he was assigned to the Foreign Ministry of Cyprus as Secretary General. On September 22, 1983, he was appointed Foreign Minister.

Iakovou ended his first term as Foreign Minister in 1993. In 1998, he was a candidate for the Presidency of Cyprus but lost out to Glafkos Clerides. After the elections of 2003, Tassos Papadopoulos appointed him once more Foreign Minister. Iakovou was replaced by Georgios Lilikas after the cabinet shuffle of 2006.

Iakovou is married with four children.