3,000 people attended the state farewell ceremony at the Washington Cathedral for former US President Jimmy Carter, who died on December 29 at the age of 101. The President was escorted out by 21 cannon salvos.
Current President Joe Biden, former presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, Barack Obama and Donald Trump came to pay tribute to the politician. Among the foreign guests are UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and former British Prime Minister Gordon Brown.
“Friendship with Jimmy Carter, his life taught me: there is nothing more important than strength of character. It is more important than a title, more important than powers. It is the awareness that everyone deserves respect. Our duty is to uncompromisingly reject manifestations of hatred, to be a barrier to the most serious sin – abuse power,” Biden said.
Carter was born and raised in Plains, Georgia, the son of peanut farmers. He graduated from the United States Naval Academy in 1946 and joined the Navy. After discharge from the army, he supported the developing movement for black rights in the United States and became an activist in the Democratic Party. From 1967 to 1971, he served as Georgia’s state senator from the 14th congressional district, and after completing his term, he became the state’s governor. Despite the fact that Carter was little known outside his home state, in 1976 he became the Democratic presidential candidate and defeated Republican Gerald Ford.
In his first days as President, Jimmy Carter granted amnesty to all Vietnam War draft dodgers and also took steps to stop the period of stagflation. Under his leadership, the US Department of Education and the US Department of Energy were created. The last years of his presidency were accompanied by an energy crisis, the taking of American hostages in Iran and the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, in response to which he ended the period of detente policy with the USSR and put forward his doctrine. He suffered a crushing defeat in the 1980 presidential election, losing to Ronald Reagan. His presidency is rated by experts as “below average,” but his activities after leaving the presidency are traditionally rated highly.
After completing his tenure, he founded the Carter Center, a non-profit human rights organization, and received the Nobel Peace Prize for his work with the center. Jimmy Carter wrote several books, including both political memoirs and poetry.
In 2002, Jimmy was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize, including for achieving peace between Israel and Egypt. Carter strongly opposed the Islamic Revolution in Iran and the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, the latter of which resulted in a boycott of the Moscow Olympics.
In recent decades, he has been sharply critical of the Jewish state, accusing Israel of “apartheid.” In 2015, during his visit, Israeli President Reuven Rivlin and Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu refused to meet with him.
The former US president will be buried next to his wife Rosalyn in his hometown of Plains.