<P> Kurt Josef Waldheim ( German : ( ˈkʊɐ̯t ˈvaldhaɪm ) ( listen ) ; 21 December 1918 -- 14 June 2007 ) was an Austrian diplomat and politician . Waldheim was the fourth Secretary - General of the United Nations from 1972 to 1981 , and the ninth President of Austria from 1986 to 1992 . While he was running for the latter office in 1986 election , the revelation of his service in Thessaloniki , Greece as an intelligence officer in the Wehrmacht during World War II raised international controversy . </P>
who was the former un secretary general and later became the president of his country
Kurt Josef Waldheim