In 1955 Olesen was part of the CIA team who secretly listened in to the leftist politicians Ragnhild Andersen and Alfred Jensen.[2] He also worked in a private intelligence organisation called Arbejdernes Informations Central (Danish: Information Centre of the Labour Movement) financed by the labour movement.[3] Its employers were members of the Social Democratic Party.[3] Later, Olesen became a member of Parliament (1966–1987) and served as deputy chairman of the Social Democratic Party in the 1970s. He served in several cabinet positions, most notably as foreign minister and defence minister. Following his exit from politics, he resumed his old profession as a sailor.
Kjeld Støttrup Olesen was born 8 July 1932 in Copenhagen to Anker Olesen (1902–1955) and Severa Madsen (1908–1973).[4] His father, Anker, was among the resistance members against Nazi Germany during World War II.[2] In 1962, Kjeld married Hanne Vibeke Hansen (b. 1937) at Hadsund Church. He remarried in 1992 to Lis Holm, a teacher.[4]
