Spaak, Paul-Henri

Spaak, Paul-Henri

(born Jan. 25, 1899, Schaerbeek, near Brussels, Belg.—died July 31, 1972, Brussels) Belgian statesman. After practicing law (1921–31), he became a socialist member of the Chamber of Deputies in 1932. For most of the period from 1936 to 1966 he served as Belgium's foreign minister, and he twice served as its premier (1938–39, 1947–50). An advocate of European cooperation, he helped form the Benelux Economic Union (1944) and helped draft the UN charter, and in 1946 he served as the UN General Assembly's first president. He signed the Brussels Treaty, helped form NATO, and served as NATO's secretary-general (1957–61). He also helped create the European Economic Community and the European Atomic Energy Community.