Kostas Simitis, who from the very beginning developed resistance action against the junta of the “colonels” (1967-74) and served as Prime Minister of Greece for eight years (1996-2004), left his mark on the history of his country mainly by working for its entry into the euro in 2001, reports AFP, reporting the news of his death today in age 88 years.

In an extensive report, AFP notes that in 2001 Greece joined the euro. In 2003, Athens held the presidency of the European Union, which then experienced its largest enlargement to date, with the addition of 10 new member states, including Cyprus, its historical ally.

In cooperation with the Cypriot leadership, Kostas Simitis “led Cyprus to its greatest success since 1960: the decision of Cyprus’ accession to the European Union, which was taken in December 2002 in Copenhagen”, Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulidis said today in his statement.

The legacy of the two Simitis governments, writes AFP, despite the important projects done in the country and preparations for the 2004 Olympic Games, was later tarnished by investigations into a major stock market bubble and corruption scandals.

After the worst financial crisis in modern Greek history in 2010, many European capitals wondered whether Athens had falsified its fiscal figures a decade earlier to join the single currency.

However, Kostas Simitis strongly defended his account of his work in his book “The Derailment” (Polis publications) on the Greek debt crisis, published in 2012, insisting that Athens had made a “titanic” effort to meet the conditions for its inclusion in the eurozone.

Regardless of how one measures fiscal performance, (Greece’s) public deficit fell by ten points to 2.5% (of GDP) in 1999,” the fiscal year in which Greece based its entry, he had argued.

The Reuters agency writes that despite the fact that Simitis was then credited with curbing bloated government spending, critics say he did not do enough to crack down on corruption.

In 2012, three years after the outbreak of the Greek debt crisis, Reuters continues, Simitis, in the book he published, criticized the handling of the crisis by Greek politicians and the European Union, while also accusing the European Commission of turning a blind eye to the excessive spending by his conservative successor.

The German News Agency in its report notes that during his tenure, Simitis tried to modernize his country and reduce bureaucracy according to his motto “Modernization has no expiration date.”

He also refers to his resistance action during the dictatorship noting that he managed to avoid arrest by escaping to Germany as an exile using a fake passport.

The French newspaper Le Monde writes that the deceased played a key role in Greece’s adoption of the euro in 2001 and contributed to the modernization of Greece’s political life.

The newspaper Liberation headlines its report: The former prime minister of Greece, Kostas Simitis, a symbol of a reformist and pro-European left, has died.