Kissinger aide William Rogers dead

UPPERVILLE, Va., Sept. 28 (UPI) -- William Rogers, who served as a top adviser to Henry Kissinger at the U.S. State Department, has died near Upperville, Va., at the age of 80.

Rogers, who worked at the State Department in the mid-1970s and later worked with Kissinger again as an international consultant, died Saturday after suffering a heart attack during a fox hunt, the Los Angeles Times reported Friday.

The former official, who also worked as a lawyer in Washington and was considered an expert on Latin America, served as assistant secretary for inter-American affairs and undersecretary for economic affairs at the State Department.

Kissinger, who hired Rogers as a founding employee of his international consulting firm in 1982, said this week that Rogers was a "great advocate of human rights" and an "absolutely dedicated man who stood for fundamental values."

He is survived by his wife of 56 years, Suzanne Rochford Rogers; two sons, Dr. William D. Rogers Jr. and Daniel R. Rogers; a sister; and four grandchildren.