Giannis Varbitsiотis, one of the most significant political figures in modern Greek political history and a historic senior member of New Democracy, passed away on Sunday, August 2, 2026, at the age of 93. He served for many years as a member of parliament for ERE and New Democracy, held ministerial office on multiple occasions, served as a Member of the European Parliament, and was Vice President of New Democracy (1993–1997).
Who was Giannis Varbitsiотis
Ioannis Varbitsiотis was born in Athens on August 2, 1933. A lawyer and politician, he served for many years as a member of parliament for ERE and New Democracy, as a minister, as a Member of the European Parliament, and as Vice President of New Democracy (1993–1997).
He was one of the longest-serving and most experienced political personalities of postwar Greece, with a parliamentary presence spanning more than four decades. He was one of the last two surviving members of parliament from the ERE party and the last living member of the 1961 parliament.
He studied law at the University of Athens and subsequently at the University of Freiburg in what was then West Germany, specializing in Corporate Law. Upon returning to Athens, he began practicing law and in 1960 was awarded a doctorate from the Athens University Law School, upon the recommendation of Professor Konstantinos Rokas. It was during this period that he came to know Konstantinos Karamanlis — an acquaintance of his father Miltiadis Varbitsiотis, who had served as a member of parliament for the People’s Party — who tasked him with drafting relevant policy briefs for government officials, and shortly thereafter appointed him as a New Democracy candidate for parliament in the Second District of Athens.
He was elected to parliament in the 1961 elections, and was re-elected in the 1963 and 1964 elections, as well as in all subsequent elections that followed (representing the Second Athens District from 1974 through 1996, and the national list in 2000).
During the period of the military dictatorship — specifically one year after it was imposed, in July 1968 — he joined other members of parliament in co-signing statements calling for the country’s return to democratic normalcy. The authorities banned him from leaving the country, whereupon, in coordination with G. Rallis and P. Papaligouras, he established contact with a unit of the resistance organization “Free Greeks.” This connection was uncovered, and on October 9 he was arrested. Following interrogation at the EAT/ESA military detention center, he was held in complete solitary confinement for five months.
After the restoration of democracy, he participated as Deputy Minister of the Interior in the Government of National Unity in 1974. Re-elected in that year’s elections with New Democracy, he subsequently served as Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs (1974–1975), Minister of Commerce (1975–1977), Minister of National Education and Religious Affairs (1977–1980), Minister of National Defence (Cooperation Government, 1989), Minister of Commerce (Ecumenical Government, 1989), Minister of National Defence (1990–1993), and Minister of Justice (1992).
He served as Vice President of the European People’s Party (1985–1996) and Vice President of New Democracy (1994–1997). In 1989, he opposed the indictment of Andreas Papandreou.
Throughout his political career, he served as Secretary of the Parliamentary Presidium (1961–1963), Secretary of the Constitutional Revision Committee (1963), and Dean of the Parliament (1965–1967). He was a permanent member of the Greek delegation to the Greece–EEC association proceedings during the period 1962–1967, and also participated in NATO parliamentary groups.
From January 1998 to August 2010, he served as President of the “K. Karamanlis Institute,” and one year earlier, in May 2009, he retired from politics after a 48-year political career.
He authored numerous studies of legal and political content, the most notable of which include: The Registered Share (1960), The EEC and Corporate Law (1970), Change in the Dock (1984), Restoration of Historical Truths (1985), The Truth About the Past as a Compass for the Future (1989), Constitutional Reflections (1993), Greece Facing the Year 2000: A New Constitutional Framework (1998), Parliamentary Immunity (2000), The Three Threats of the Century (2002), Political(Cultural) Photogrammetry (2005), Europe’s Immigration Policy (2006), The Necessary Revision (2006), Blind Armies: The West and the Threat of Islamic Fundamentalism (2008), In Search of Art (2008), and the bilingual edition 5 Years in the European Parliament 2004–2009 (2009). He also wrote numerous articles on political and social topics. He visited England, West Germany, and the United States as an official guest.
He was honored by then-President of the Republic Karolos Papoulias with the Grand Cross of the Order of the Phoenix, in recognition of his long political service, as well as with other senior decorations from various countries.
