Who We Are
The American Hellenic Institute, Inc. (AHI) was founded on August 1, 1974 and the American Hellenic Institute Foundation, Inc. (AHIF) was founded in March 1975, following Turkey’s invasion of Cyprus on July 20, 1974 and renewed aggression on August 14-16, 1974 with the illegal use of U.S.-supplied arms and the refusal of then Secretary of State Henry A. Kissinger to enforce U.S. laws. The U.S. laws which Turkey violated are the Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 and the Foreign Military Sales Act by using U.S.-supplied arms for the invasion of Cyprus and continuing occupation of 37.3% of Cyprus from 1974 to date. Those acts required the immediate halt in U.S. military aid to Turkey which the then Secretary of State Henry A. Kissinger refused to do.
AHI is a 501(c)(6) non-profit, tax-exempt organization. AHIF is a 501(c)(3) non-profit, tax-exempt educational and charitable organization.
AHI in 1974 advocated a profoundly simple response – enforce U.S. laws and international laws. Since then AHI and AHIF have become the leading forums for addressing important issues that affect U.S. relations with Greece, Cyprus, Turkey, Southeastern Europe and the Eastern Mediterranean. AHI is a well-respected lobby which also provides a business network. AHIF is the leading Greek American think tank and educational organization that informs leaders, policymakers and citizens alike on issues of concern to the Greek American community.
Key issues have included:
- ending Turkey’s illegal occupation of Cyprus;
- Turkey’s aggressive acts in the Aegean Sea;
- Turkey’s treatment of the Ecumenical Patriarchate; and
- the U.S.’s response to the dispute between Greece and the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (FYROM) over the latter nation’s name.
Board of Editors
- Dan Georgakis, Managing Editor and head of the Board of Editors
- Nicholas G. Karambelas, Esq., Deputy Managing Editor
- Yola Pakhchanian, Director of Publications
Board of Advisers
- John Metaxas, Chairman of the Board of Advisers
- Professor Van Coufoudakis, retired Dean of Academics at Indiana-Purdue University
- Professor Constantine Hatzidimitriou
- Dr. Christos P. Ioannides, Director of Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies at Queens College, City University of New York
- Nick Larigakis, Executive Director, American Hellenic Institute
- Professor Professor S. Victor Papacosma is Professor of History and Director of the Lemnitzer Center for NATO and European Union Studies at Kent State University
- Maria Papathanasiou, Managing Editor European Affairs
- Ambassador Clay Constantinou (ret.)
- Professor Harry Dinella, professor of Joint, Interagency, and Multinational Operations at the U.S. Army Command & General Staff College Satellite Campus at Fort Belvoir, Virginia.
Publisher
- Gene Rossides
AHIF Policy Journal will be published semi-annually by the American Hellenic Institute Foundation. Each issue of the journal will generally contain a scholarly article and shorter articles, essays or briefing papers on policy issues, student notes and book reviews.
Our goal is to provide a forum to promote the exchange of ideas and encourage a dialogue on United States relations with Greece, Cyprus, Turkey, Southeastern Europe and the Middle East.
