Elmedin Konaković

Elmedin Konaković
Konaković in 2024
Minister of Foreign Affairs
Incumbent
Assumed office
25 January 2023
Prime MinisterBorjana Krišto
Preceded byBisera Turković
Premier of Sarajevo Canton
In office
23 March 2015 – 4 April 2018
Preceded byMuhamed Kozadra
Succeeded byAdem Zolj
Parliamentary offices
Member of the Federal House of Representatives
In office
1 December 2022 – 25 January 2023
Member of the Federal House of Peoples
In office
1 July 2019 – 1 December 2022
Personal details
Born (1974-09-03) 3 September 1974 (age 50)
Sarajevo, SR Bosnia and Herzegovina, SFR Yugoslavia
NationalityBosnian
Political partyPeople and Justice (2018–present)
Other political
affiliations		Party of Democratic Action (2004–2018)
Spouse
Dalija Hasanbegović
​
(m. 2016)​
Children2
Alma materUniversity of Sarajevo (BPE, MPE)

Elmedin "Dino" Konaković (born 3 September 1974) is a Bosnian politician serving as Minister of Foreign Affairs since January 2023. He is the founder and president of the People and Justice party, and was previously a member of the Federal House of Representatives.

Konaković was also a member of the Federal House of Peoples from 2019 to 2022. He served as Premier of Sarajevo Canton from 2015 to 2018 as well.

Early life and education

Konaković was born in Sarajevo, SFR Yugoslavia, present-day Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1974. He graduated from Electrical Engineering secondary School and, after the Bosnian War, from the Faculty of Sports and Physical Education of the University of Sarajevo.

Early career

During the Bosnian War, Konaković joined the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina (10th Mountain Brigade and 15th Motorized Brigade) and played in Sarajevo's famous basketball club, KK Bosna.[1] He continued his career in the late 1990s in Slovenia, Hungary and Romania. In 2002, Konaković became director of the Bosnia and Herzegovina men's national basketball team, and in 2003 director of KK Bosna, a position he held until 2007.[2]

Political career

In 2004, Konaković joined the Party of Democratic Action (SDA) and was elected to the local council of the Centar municipality in Sarajevo. At the 2008 municipal elections, he ran for municipal mayor of Centar, but with no success. After the 2010 general election, he entered the Sarajevo Cantonal Assembly and became chair of the SDA MPs caucus.

On 23 March 2015, Konaković was appointed Premier of Sarajevo Canton.[1] He was removed from the post in March 2018, after he had decided to leave the SDA. Konaković then set up his own People and Justice party, and was elected speaker of the Sarajevo Cantonal Assembly after the 2018 general election, serving until January 2020.[3][4] Meanwhile, in July 2019, he was appointed to the Federal House of Peoples.[2]

Minister of Foreign Affairs (2023–present)

Appointment

See also: Cabinet of Borjana Krišto

On 25 January 2023, following the formation of a new Council of Ministers presided over by Borjana Krišto, Konaković was appointed as the new Minister of Foreign Affairs within Krišto's government.[5]

Tenure

Konaković with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, 1 November 2023

On 13 February 2023, Konaković spoke in a telephone call with United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken, expressing his gratitude for the United States' "commitment to peace, security and stability of Bosnia and Herzegovina."[6] He attended the 59th Munich Security Conference from 17 to 19 February, during which he met with a number of foreign officials from Spain, Sweden, Austria, France and the United Kingdom.[7]

On 11 May 2023, Konaković announced that a draft on the law regarding the foreign affairs of Bosnia and Herzegovina was adopted unanimously at a Council of Ministers session.[8] He would later say that the session was the "most productive one this Council ever had."[9]

On 13 June 2023, Konaković met with British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly during an official visit to the United Kingdom.[10] They discussed bilateral relations between Bosnia and Herzegovina and the United Kingdom, Euro-Atlantic integration, regional relations and global security issues.[11]

Following a large escalation of the Gaza–Israel conflict in October 2023, Konaković condemned Hamas' attacks, but also said that "he never hid his support for the people and the government of Palestine in order to keep and protect the areas they live in, to fight for sovereignty and territorial integrity of their land and protect their religious objects on that area that are of great importance for the faithful from all around the world."[12]

In January 2024, U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken wrote a letter to Konaković, urging him to "press Croatian Democratic Union leader Dragan Čović to end his obstruction on the realization of the Southern Interconnection natural gas pipeline project between Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina."[13]

Personal life

Konaković has been married to Al Jazeera Balkans journalist Dalija Hasanbegović since 2016, and together they have two children. He does not have real estate, while his wife owns several properties in Sarajevo as a heritage from the Merhemić family.[2] He was previously married with models Aida Osmanović and then with Martina Saira Keškić, divorcing the latter in 2014.[1]

Besides his native Bosnian, Konaković speaks English fluently and is conversant in Italian and Romanian.[2]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c Ko je Elmedin Dino Konaković, novi premijer Kantona Sarajevo? at depo.ba
  2. ^ a b c d Elmedin Konaković at imovinapoliticara.cin.ba
  3. ^ PORTAL, Oslobođenje (12 March 2018). "Elmedin Konaković osnovao stranku Narod i pravda". www.oslobodjenje.ba (in Bosnian). Retrieved 12 March 2018.
  4. ^ izbori.ba – 2018 – SC
  5. ^ N.V. (25 January 2023). "BiH dobila novo Vijeće ministara, državnu vlast sada čini SNSD, HDZ, SDP, NiP, NS, DNS..." (in Bosnian). Klix.ba. Retrieved 25 January 2023.
  6. ^ "Razgovarali Elmedin Konaković i Antony Blinken: Evo šta je rečeno na sastanku" (in Bosnian). radiosarajevo.ba. 13 February 2023. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
  7. ^ V.K. (20 February 2023). "Konaković: Zbog toga što jedna stranka nije u vlasti neki bi da nas okrenu prema Putinu" (in Bosnian). Klix.ba. Retrieved 20 February 2023.
  8. ^ "Konaković: Vijeće ministara BiH usvojilo Nacrt zakona o vanjskim poslovima BiH". startbih.ba (in Bosnian). 11 May 2023. Retrieved 11 May 2023.
  9. ^ "Konaković: Ovo je bila najproduktivnija sjednica u historiji Vijeća ministara" (in Bosnian). N1. 11 May 2023. Retrieved 11 May 2023.
  10. ^ "Ministar Konaković sastao se sa državnim sekretarom za vanjske poslove Džejmsom Kleverlijem" (in Bosnian). Dnevni avaz. 13 June 2023. Retrieved 13 June 2023.
  11. ^ "Konakovic-Cleverly: UK remains committed to Providing Support to BiH". Sarajevo Times. 14 June 2023. Retrieved 14 June 2023.
  12. ^ "Konaković o Gazi: Nikada nisam krio podršku narodu i vlastima Palestine, dvije države su jedino rješenje". Klix.ba (in Bosnian). Sarajevo. 21 October 2023. Retrieved 21 October 2023.
  13. ^ F.H. (17 January 2024). "Blinken pisao Konakoviću: "Izvršite pritisak na Čovića da prestane s opstrukcijama za Južnu interkonekciju"" (in Bosnian). Klix.ba. Retrieved 17 January 2024.
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Political offices
Preceded by Minister of Foreign Affairs
2023–present 		Incumbent