Ambassador Thomas M.T. Niles: Farewell to a gentleman of diplomacy

With deep emotion and heartfelt gratitude, I write this tribute to the memory of Ambassador Thomas M.T. Niles – one of the finest American diplomats of his generation and, for me, a beloved and irreplaceable friend.

Tom Niles was more than a diplomat. He was a gentleman in the truest sense: principled, kind, discreet, wise and humble. From the moment we met in Athens in 1993 during his tenure as US ambassador to Greece, a profound and rare friendship formed between us. Despite our age difference, we became the closest of friends. For me, he was the most wonderful human being I have ever met.

Tom’s distinction lay not in his title, but in his character. Always correct, always graceful, with natural kindness and quiet dignity. There was no arrogance in him – only strength of mind, intellectual depth, wisdom, and an instinct for selfless service. His humility, particularly in the role of ambassador, was something rare and deeply moving.

Many US diplomats who knew him have said Tom was the best Foreign Service officer they ever met. For me, he was far more than a public figure

He loved Greece. He was a true philhellene. Every weekend, he would travel through the provinces, hiking and walking through the countryside. “To understand a people,” he once told me, “you have to walk their land.” I remember one such moment in the mountains of Crete. We came across a shepherd who looked at him and said: “Wait a minute… Aren’t you the American ambassador?” It captured how naturally and quietly he connected with people – not from a podium, but eye to eye.

Tom also loved animals deeply. During his time in Athens, he had a beloved dog named Wheat. One day, Wheat touched a live electrical wire on the grounds of the ambassador’s residence and tragically passed away. Tom buried him there and erected a tombstone. He grieved deeply, falling into a depression for weeks. Solace came only later, on Mount Hymettus, when he found a sick, abandoned dog. He adopted him, named him Atlas, cared for him tenderly, and brought him back to the US with him at the end of his posting. That was Tom’s heart – sensitive, compassionate, utterly human.

On another occasion, he visited the monastic community of Mount Athos, accompanied by Wheat. The monks did not allow animals to sleep indoors. So Tom, out of respect for Wheat and the place, chose to sleep outside with his dog under the stars. A quiet act of loyalty and humility, and a testament to his values.

In 1999, at the young age of 60, Tom left diplomatic service. He was offered numerous high-level positions by major American companies. He turned them all down. “Once I’ve been a ‘salesman’ for my country,” he told me, “how can I be a salesman for a company?” That single sentence speaks volumes about his integrity.

His honesty extended to the most difficult matters of state. About a year after leaving his post in Athens, in an interview he reflected: “We made a big mistake when we decided not to take a position on sovereignty and let Greece and Turkey work things out on their own. We knew by then that the Greeks were right on the sovereignty issue. The Turks knew that we knew how weak their position was. When we refused to take a position, it sent a signal to the Turks that we were prepared to tolerate, or at least not respond to, aggressive Turkish behavior toward the Greeks. We didn’t want to offend an important ally, Turkey, but that led to a series of Turkish claims and statements about the Aegean that poisoned relations with Greece even further.”

That was Tom: courageous, principled, and loyal to truth – even if inconvenient.

In 2001, just a month and a half after the 9/11 attacks, I asked Tom to be the best man at my wedding in Athens. His wife was unwell at the time, and the global climate was tense. And yet, Tom flew in for just one day – telling his wife he had to go to Brussels on business. That was Tom: present, committed, and generous beyond words.

In 2006, I asked him to baptize my daughter. Once again, he flew from New York to the remote island of Nisyros in Greece for just one day – no easy journey. On the plane, he sat next to a psychiatrist. When Tom explained what he was doing, the doctor replied, half jokingly, “I think you need my services.” That was the kind of friend Tom was.

It was a deep honor that he agreed to serve as honorary president of the Georgios M. Mihalos Foundation and the “Nisyros Dialogues” – a think tank / forum for discussing the geopolitics of the Eastern Mediterranean, energy and security, the environment, Acritic island sustainable development and the interculturalism of the Eastern Mediterranean. He cared deeply for these issues and offered not only his name, but his time, insight, and moral guidance.

Many US diplomats who knew him have said Tom was the best Foreign Service officer they ever met. For me, he was far more than a public figure. He was my friend, my best man, my daughter’s godfather, and one of the most loyal souls I’ve known.

His legacy is not just diplomatic – it is moral, human and enduring.

The world is poorer without him, but all of us who knew him are infinitely richer for having had him in our lives.

He will be sorely missed.