Cypriot President Nikos Christodoulides on Monday said he was “saddened” by the death of former United States President Jimmy Carter the previous day.

Christodoulides described Carter as “a selfless leader who devoted his life to service and the greater good.

“His legacy both in office and beyond will inspire generations to come. I extend my deepest condolences to the Carter family and the people of the US,” he said.

Carter died aged 100 years old at his home in the US state of Georgia, with incumbent US President Joe Biden declaring that January 9 will be a national day of mourning throughout the country.

Carter beat Gerald Ford in the 1976 US presidential election and was sworn in in the January of the following year. He served a single term in office, marked by the high of the 1978 Camp David accords between Israel and Egypt, which brought some semblance of stability to the Middle East.

However, economic problems at home and the Iran hostage crisis, during which 53 US diplomats and citizens were taken hostage in Iran in 1979, damaged his popularity, and saw him beaten in a landslide by Ronald Reagan when he stood for election in 1980.

He was the first former US president to reach the age of 100.