Kurt Waldheim

Austrian President 1986-1992, lawyer and diplomat, who served as the fourth Secretary General of the United Nations 1972-1981. He was educated at the Diplomatic Academy and Vienna University. Drafted into the army in 1939, he worked as a staff officer interpreter in the Balkans. Joining the Austrian consular service in 1945, his first foreign assignment was as first secretary in the Embassy at Paris 1948-1951. He subsequently held high positions in the ministry of foreign affairs in Vienna 1951-1955 and 1960-1964 and served as minister and then ambassador to Canada 1956-1960. Having held the post of Austrian foreign minister 1968-1970, Waldheim then unsuccessfully tried for the People's Party for the Austrian presidency in 1971. Later that year, his long career at the U.N. was climaxed by his election to a five-year term as secretary general. He was elected to a second term in 1976 and an unprecedented third term in 1981 was vetoed by China during 16 rounds of balloting before he withdrew. Despite international uproar over his service with German army units that committed atrocities during WW II, he was elected President in 1986. A panel of historians concluded that he was well aware of war crimes, did nothing to stop them and then concealed his knowledge. Waldheim did not seek another term as President. The 88-year-old Waldheim died of heart failure on June 14, 2007 in Vienna, Austria. Link to Wikipedia biography