born Jan. 19, 1920, Lima, Peru
Fifth secretary-general of the
He joined the Peruvian foreign ministry in 1940 and its foreign service in 1944, serving in France, Britain, Bolivia, and Brazil. After serving as ambassador to Switzerland and as Peru's first ambassador to the Soviet Union, he was appointed the country's ambassador to the UN, a post he held until he was appointed secretary-general. As secretary-general he advocated the use of the {{link=United Nations Security Council">United Nations Security Council for keeping the peace and as a forum for negotiation. In his second term, he negotiated the cease-fire that ended the Iran-Iraq War (1988). Pérez de Cuéllar later served as prime minister of Peru (2000–01).