The United States’ former vice president, Dick Cheney, a chief architect of the second war in Iraq, has been confirmed dead by medical practitioners at age 84.
The former vice president was reported to have died from complications related to pneumonia and heart and vascular disease.
His death was confirmed by his family in a statement issued on Tuesday through their spokesperson, Jeremy Adler.
In the statement, the relatives described Cheney as a “great and good man who taught his children and grandchildren to love our country, and to live lives of courage, honor, love, kindness, and fly fishing.”
“We are grateful beyond measure for all Dick Cheney did for our country. And we are blessed beyond measure to have loved and been loved by this noble giant of a man,” the family added.
Former U.S. President George W. Bush also led tributes to Cheney, calling his death “a loss to the nation and a sorrow to his friends.”
“History will remember him as among the finest public servants of his generation,” Bush said in a statement.
“Cheney was “a patriot who brought integrity, high intelligence, and seriousness of purpose to every position he held,” Bush added.
Cheney served as vice president for eight years under President George W. Bush and as Secretary of Defense under his father, President George H.W. Bush.
Before that, he served in the U.S. House of Representatives as a Republican from Wyoming and as White House Chief of Staff for President Gerald Ford.
Cheney was a controversial political figure, particularly in his role in the “war on terror,” which saw the U.S. invade Iraq in the wake of the 9/11 attacks.
Iraqi writer Sinan Antoon said that Cheney’s lasting legacy in the country is one of “chaos and terrorism.”
During George W. Bush’s administration, Cheney transformed the traditionally ceremonial role of vice president into a de facto deputy presidency, overseeing American foreign policy and national security following the September 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon.
He was a leading advocate of U.S. military action in both Afghanistan and Iraq.
In the lead-up to the invasion of Iraq, Cheney claimed that Saddam Hussein’s regime possessed weapons of mass destruction, though such weapons were never found.
He also repeatedly asserted links between Iraq and al-Qaeda, the terrorist group led by Osama bin Laden, which claimed responsibility for the 9/11 attacks. He warned that the attackers would face the “full wrath” of American military might.
Cheney’s central role in the campaign significantly affected his political legacy, especially as the U.S. spent years extricating itself from the costly war in Iraq, which resulted in the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people.
His political career later became the subject of the 2018 feature film Vice, with actor Christian Bale receiving a Golden Globe for his portrayal of the former vice president.
