Boris Milošević ( sr-Cyrl, Борис Милошевић, ; born 5 November 1974) is a Croatian Serb lawyer and politician who served as

Deputy Prime Minister of Croatia The deputy prime minister of Croatia (officially the Vice President of the Government of the Republic of Croatia, ) is the official deputy of the Prime Minister of Croatia. Article 109 of the Constitution of Croatia states that the cabinet is t ...

between 2020 and 2022. He is a member of the

Independent Democratic Serb Party The Independent Democratic Serb Party ( sh-Cyrl-Latn, Самостална демократска српска странка, Samostalna demokratska srpska stranka, SDSS) is a social-democratic political party in Croatia representing the interes ...

(SDSS). He previously served as the president of the

Serb National Council The Serb National Council ( sh-Cyrl-Latn, Српско народно вијеће, Srpsko narodno vijeće) is an elected political, consulting and coordinating body which acts as a form of self-government and autonomous cultural institution of ...

from July 2019 until July 2020.

Early life and career

Milošević was born to an ethnic

Serb The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are a South Slavic ethnic group native to Southeastern Europe who share a common Serbian ancestry, culture, history, and language. They primarily live in Serbia, Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia ...

family in 1974 in

Šibenik Šibenik (), historically known as Sebenico (), is a historic town in Croatia, located in central Dalmatia, where the river Krka (Croatia), Krka flows into the Adriatic Sea. Šibenik is one of the oldest Croatia, Croatian self-governing cities ...

, which at that time was a part of the

SFR Yugoslavia The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (commonly abbreviated as SFRY or SFR Yugoslavia), known from 1945 to 1963 as the Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia, commonly referred to as Socialist Yugoslavia or simply Yugoslavia, was a country ...

. He graduated from the Faculty of Law, University of Rijeka, and later enrolled in postgraduate studies in public law and administration at the

Faculty of Law, University of Zagreb The Faculty of Law of the University of Zagreb (, , PFZG) is the law school of the University of Zagreb. Founded in 1776 by Empress Maria Theresa as part of her comprehensive reforms in the system of education in the Habsburg monarchy, it is the ...

. During the

Croatian War of Independence The Croatian War of Independence) and (rarely) "War in Krajina" ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Рат у Крајини, Rat u Krajini) are used. was an armed conflict fought in Croatia from 1991 to 1995 between Croats, Croat forces loyal to the Governmen ...

his father was mobilized into the

Croatian Army The Croatian Army ( or HKoV) is the land force branch of the Croatian Armed Forces. It is numerically the largest of the three branches of the Croatian Armed Forces. The HKoV is the main force for the defense of the country against external threa ...

even though he was a Serb because Šibenik was under control of Croatia, unlike a lot of Serb majority areas where the

Republic of Serbian Krajina The Republic of Serbian Krajina or Serb Republic of Krajina ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Република Српска Крајина, Republika Srpska Krajina, separator=" / ", ; abbr. РСК / RSK), known as the Serbian Krajina ( sr-Cyrl-Latn, Српск� ...

had control. Milošević's grandmother Dara Milošević was murdered in the village of Bribirske Mostine in the aftermath of the

Operation Storm Operation Storm ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Operacija Oluja, separator=" / ", Операција Олуја) was the last major battle of the Croatian War of Independence and a major factor in the outcome of the Bosnian War. It was a decisive victory f ...

. Her murderer Veselko Bilić was arrested after bragging about "murdering a '

Chetnik The Chetniks,, ; formally the Chetnik Detachments of the Yugoslav Army, and also the Yugoslav Army in the Homeland; and informally colloquially the Ravna Gora Movement, was a Kingdom of Yugoslavia, Yugoslav royalist and Serbian nationalist m ...

'" and sentenced to 7.5 years in prison. He was, however, pardoned by the

President of Croatia The president of Croatia, officially the president of the Republic of Croatia (), is the head of state, commander-in-chief of the military and chief representative of the Republic of Croatia both within the country and abroad. The president ...

Franjo Tuđman Franjo Tuđman (14 May 1922 – 10 December 1999) was a Croatian politician and historian who became the first president of Croatia, from 1990 until his death in 1999. He served following the Independence of Croatia, country's independe ...

after 3.5 years. From 2002 to 2005 he was an intern at the Municipal Court in

Benkovac Benkovac () is a town and municipality in the Zadar County, Croatia. Geography Benkovac is located where the plain of Ravni Kotari and the karstic plateau of Bukovica, Croatia, Bukovica meet, 20 km from the town of Biograd na Moru and 30&n ...

. From 2005 to 2007, he worked as a legal advisor for the Spanish humanitarian organization, Movement for Peace, and from 2007 to 2008 he worked as the secretary of the municipality of

Kistanje Kistanje (, sr-Cyrl, Кистање) is a village and municipality in Šibenik-Knin County, Croatia. It is located in Bukovica, a region of the Dalmatian Hinterland. Geography Kistanje is located in the microregion of Bukovica, in the Dal ...

. After moving to

Zagreb Zagreb ( ) is the capital (political), capital and List of cities and towns in Croatia#List of cities and towns, largest city of Croatia. It is in the Northern Croatia, north of the country, along the Sava river, at the southern slopes of the ...

, from 2008 to 2011 he worked as a legal advisor in the

(SNV), the most influential association of the Serb community in Croatia. He was also a member of the main board of the Center for Human Rights from 2010 to 2012.

Political career

Serb National Council

His serious political career began in 2012 when he became the Assistant Minister of Public Administration and Head of the Directorate for the Political System and Local (Regional) Self-Government under the minister Arsen Bauk. In the 2016 election, he was elected a Member of Parliament, and became the President of the

(SDSS) Parliamentary Club. During his parliamentary career he was a member of the inter-parliamentarty friendship groups with

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...

Montenegro , image_flag = Flag of Montenegro.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Montenegro.svg , coa_size = 80 , national_motto = , national_anthem = () , image_map = Europe-Mont ...

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, also known as Czechia, and historically known as Bohemia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the south ...

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

and the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

. He was also a member of the Parliamentary Committee for Human Rights and the Rights of National Minorities and the Parliamentary Committee for Labor, Pension System and Social Partnership. He advocated the use of the

Serbian Cyrillic The Serbian Cyrillic alphabet (, ), also known as the Serbian script, (, ), is a standardized variation of the Cyrillic script used to write the Serbian language. It originated in medieval Serbia and was significantly reformed in the 19th cen ...

alphabet, stating that "the Cyrillic alphabet symbolizes Serbs in Croatia", and that those who say that the Cyrillic alphabet is not desirable actually want to say that Serbs are the ones who are undesirable. In July 2019, he became the president of the Serb National Council (SNV), and he came to that position after

Milorad Pupovac Milorad Pupovac (; born 5 November 1955) is a Croatian politician and linguist. He is a member of the Sabor, the former president of the Serb National Council, and the president of the Independent Democratic Serb Party. He was also an Member of ...

, who led SNV for 22 years. He was elected to the

Croatian Parliament The Croatian Parliament () or the Sabor is the Unicameralism, unicameral legislature of Croatia. Under the terms of the Constitution of Croatia, Croatian Constitution, the Sabor represents the nation, people and is vested with legislative power. ...

following the 2020 election, in which the SDSS won all seats belonging to the Serb national minority.

Deputy Prime Minister

On 23 July 2020, Milošević was elected one of the four

Deputy Prime Ministers of Croatia Deputy or depute may refer to: * Steward (office) * Khalifa, an Arabic title that can signify "deputy" * Deputy (legislator), a legislator in many countries and regions, including: ** A member of a Chamber of Deputies, for example in Italy, Spain, ...

in charge of social affairs and human and minority rights in the new cabinet of

Andrej Plenković Andrej Plenković ( ; born 8 April 1970) is a Croatian politician serving as the Prime Minister of Croatia, prime minister of Croatia since October 2016. He was previously one of eleven List of members of the European Parliament for Croatia, 201 ...

. Due to accepting the government position he had to resign as the president of SNV. Croatian President

Zoran Milanović Zoran Milanović (; born 30 October 1966) is a Croatia, Croatian politician and the incumbent president of Croatia. First elected in 2020, he was re-elected in 2025 with 74% voter support. Prior to assuming the presidency, he was the prime min ...

reacted to Milošević becoming a Deputy Prime Minister by saying that he wishes to see Milošević in

Knin Knin () is a city in the Šibenik-Knin County of Croatia, located in the Dalmatian hinterland near the source of the river Krka (Croatia), Krka, an important traffic junction on the rail and road routes between Zagreb and Split, Croatia, Split. ...

at the celebration of the

Victory Day Victory Day is a commonly used name for public holidays in various countries, where it commemorates a nation's triumph over a hostile force in a war or the liberation of a country from hostile occupation. In many cases, multiple countries may ob ...

, marking the anniversary of

that brought an end to the Serb rebellion, and led to a large refugee crisis of Serb civilians, for which Milanović blamed the then

Belgrade Belgrade is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin, Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. T ...

government. The anniversary has for a long time been a subject of dispute between Croatia and Serbia. On 30 July,

Prime Minister A prime minister or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. A prime minister is not the head of state, but r ...

Plenković announced that Milošević would be participating in the celebration of the Victory Day while the Minister of Croatian Veterans Tomo Medved would be participating in the commemoration of the Grubori massacre, where six Serb civilians were killed in the aftermath of the Operation Storm. This was the first time that any political representative of Croatian Serbs attended the Victory Day celebration. Milošević's decision was mostly met with positive reactions in Croatia, including the opposition parties. Political representatives of

Croats of Serbia Croats of Serbia ( Croatian: ''Hrvati u Srbiji,'' Serbian: ''Хрвати у Србији'') are a recognized national minority in Serbia. According to the 2022 census, the population of ethnic Croats in Serbia is 39,107, constituting 0.6% of t ...

also welcomed Milošević's decision. However, criticism came from

far-right Far-right politics, often termed right-wing extremism, encompasses a range of ideologies that are marked by ultraconservatism, authoritarianism, ultranationalism, and nativism. This political spectrum situates itself on the far end of the ...

circles, such as

Croatian Defence Forces The Croatian Defence Forces ( or HOS) were the paramilitary arm of the Croatian Party of Rights (HSP) from 1991 to 1992, during the first stages of the Yugoslav wars. During the Croatian War of Independence, the HOS organised several early compa ...

. Criticism also came from the

Government of Serbia The government of Serbia ( sr-cyrl, Влада Србије, Vlada Srbije), formally the Government of the Republic of Serbia ( sr-cyrl, Влада Републике Србије, Vlada Republike Srbije), commonly abbreviated to Serbian Governme ...

and

Bosnian Serb The Serbs of Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sr-Cyrl, Срби Босне и Херцеговине, Srbi Bosne i Hercegovine), often referred to as Bosnian Serbs ( sr-cyrl, босански Срби, bosanski Srbi) or Herzegovinian Serbs ( sr-cyrl, � ...

politicians, who previously urged Croatian Serbs not to participate in the anniversary.

Milorad Dodik Milorad Dodik ( sr-Cyrl, Милорад Додик, ; born 12 March 1959) is a Bosnian Serb politician currently serving as the 8th president of Republika Srpska since 2022, a position he previously held from 2010 to 2018. He also served as ...

, the Serb member of the

Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina The presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Predsjedništvo Bosne i Hercegovine, separator=" / ", Предсједништво Босне и Херцеговине) is a three-member body which collectively serves as head of state of ...

called Milošević's decision "unacceptable", while Aleksandar Vulin, the Minister of Defence of Serbia, said that he "could not believe that a Serb was going to celebrate the expulsion of 250,000 Serbs".

President of Serbia The president of Serbia (), officially styled as President of the Republic (), is the head of state of Serbia. The current officeholder is Aleksandar Vučić, who was elected in 2017 and has held the role since 31 May 2017. According to the C ...

Aleksandar Vučić Aleksandar Vučić, (born 5 March 1970) is a Serbian politician serving as President of Serbia since 2017. A founding member of the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS), he previously served as President of the SNS from 2012 to 2023, Deputy Prim ...

later said that it was up to Serbia and

Republika Srpska Republika Srpska ( sr-Cyrl, Република Српска, ; also referred to as the Republic of Srpska or Serb Republic) is one of the two Political divisions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, entities within Bosnia and Herzegovina, the other bein ...

to say that "they did not support the presence of Serb representatives at the celebration of the Operation Storm in Knin, and that they would never stop marking the anniversaries of the '

pogrom A pogrom is a violent riot incited with the aim of Massacre, massacring or expelling an ethnic or religious group, particularly Jews. The term entered the English language from Russian to describe late 19th- and early 20th-century Anti-Jewis ...

' of Serbs from Croatia". Savo Štrbac, director of the Veritas Documentation and Information Center, said that Milošević's father was a winner over Serbs and a recognized Croatian veteran, and that the question was whether Serbs would have voted for him in the parliamentary elections if they had known. Special envoy of the President of Serbia for resolving the issue of missing persons with Croatia, Veran Matić, said that "Milošević had proved to be a very dedicated, principled and valuable advocate of the interests of Serbs in Croatia, but also the democratization of Croatia". After the Victory Day celebration, Milošević talked to the media about his reasons for coming and about Serb victims explaining it with a quote: The same day, after the celebration in Knin was over, a banner was set up above the

Zemun Zemun ( sr-cyrl, Земун, ; ) is a Subdivisions of Belgrade, municipality in the city of Belgrade, Serbia. Zemun was a separate town that was absorbed into Belgrade in 1934. It lies on the right bank of the Danube river, upstream from downtown ...

–

Pančevo Pančevo (Serbian Cyrillic: Панчево, ; ; ; ; ) is a list of cities in Serbia, city and the administrative center of the South Banat District in the autonomous province of Vojvodina, Serbia. It is located on the shores of rivers Timiș (ri ...

highway, between

Borča Borča ( sr-cyr, Борча, ) is an urban settlement of the municipality of Palilula, Belgrade, Palilula, Belgrade, Serbia. It is located in the left-bank part of the municipality, separated by the Danube from the rest of the city. , it has a popu ...

and Padinska Skela, saying "Борисе Милошевићу, пичко ustaška" (). One day after the celebration, Milošević said that he knew that people in Serbia would not understand his decision and that he condemns all war crimes, "especially crimes committed against

Croats The Croats (; , ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and other neighboring countries in Central Europe, Central and Southeastern Europe who share a common Croatian Cultural heritage, ancest ...

in Lovas,

Škabrnja Škabrnja is a village and a municipality in northern Dalmatia, Croatia, located halfway between Zadar and Benkovac, in the lowland region of Ravni Kotari. The municipality includes the village of Škabrnja with a population of 1,413, as well as t ...

, Nadin and all other places". Milošević said that the mass return of exiled Serbs to the territories where Operation Storm was carried out "will certainly not happen", but that the message of the government is that it will do everything to create preconditions for that. On 18 November 2020, on the Remembrance Day of the Sacrifice of Vukovar in 1991, Milošević took part in the memorial walk through the

city A city is a human settlement of a substantial size. The term "city" has different meanings around the world and in some places the settlement can be very small. Even where the term is limited to larger settlements, there is no universally agree ...

. The same day, he took to

Facebook Facebook is a social media and social networking service owned by the American technology conglomerate Meta Platforms, Meta. Created in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with four other Harvard College students and roommates, Eduardo Saverin, Andre ...

to express his condolences to the families affected by the Vukovar massacre. On 3 July 2021, Milošević took part in 20th annual Zagreb Pride, alongside other politicians such as Mayor of Zagreb

Tomislav Tomašević Tomislav Tomašević (; born 13 January 1982) is a Croatian politician, activist, environmentalist and political scientist who has served as the 53rd List of mayors of Zagreb, mayor of Zagreb since 2021. He is one of the leaders of the local Zagr ...

and

Social Democratic Party The name Social Democratic Party or Social Democrats has been used by many political parties in various countries around the world. Such parties are most commonly aligned to social democracy as their political ideology. Active parties Form ...

president Peđa Grbin, earning praise from Prime Minister Plenković. On 23 July, he praised the citizens' decision to put

Nikola Tesla Nikola Tesla (;"Tesla"
. ''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. ; 10 July 1856 – 7 ...

on Croatian euro coins (as a result of a public online poll), dubbing him the "symbol that binds us (Serbs and Croats) to the whole world. The citizens of Croatia voted for a Serb from Croatia, who was proud of his people and his homeland, who always remained faithful to his culture—a typical ''

Krajina Krajina () is a Slavic languages, Slavic toponym, meaning 'country' or 'march (territory), march'. The term is related to ''kraj'' or ''krai'', originally meanings ''land'', ''country'' or ''edge''Rick Derksen (2008), ''Etymological Dictionary of t ...

'', '' Prečani'' one—and now he is going to be on a Croatian euro coin as one of the recognizable symbols of the Republic of Croatia."

Personal life

He is married and has one child, while his wife works at the Serbian Orthodox Secondary School in Zagreb.

References