Sifet Podžić

Sifet Podžić
Minister of Defence
In office
23 December 2019 – 25 January 2023
Prime MinisterZoran Tegeltija
Preceded byMarina Pendeš
Succeeded byZukan Helez
Chief of Joint Staff of the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina
In office
1 January 2006 – 20 July 2008
PresidentHaris Silajdžić
Nebojša Radmanović
Željko Komšić
Preceded byOffice established
Succeeded byMiladin Milojčić
Parliamentary offices
Member of the House of Peoples
In office
16 February 2015 – 28 February 2019
Personal details
Born (1959-05-01) 1 May 1959 (age 65)
Žepa, SR Bosnia and Herzegovina, SFR Yugoslavia
NationalityBosnian
Political partyDemocratic Front (2013–present)
Children2
Alma materUniversity of Sarajevo (MA, PhD)
Military service
Allegiance Yugoslavia (1978–92)
 Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina (1992–95)
 Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (1995–04)
 Bosnia and Herzegovina (2004–09)
Branch/serviceJNA (1978–92)
ARBiH (1992–95)
VFBiH (1995–04)
OSBiH (2004–09)
Years of service1978–2009
RankCommander
Commands5th Corps of the Federal Army
Battles/warsBosnian War

Sifet Podžić (born 1 May 1959) is a Bosnian politician and former Army commander who served as Minister of Defence from 2019 to 2023. He has been a member of the Democratic Front since 2013.

Podžić previously served as member of the national House of Peoples from 2015 to 2019, and was also the first Chief of Joint Staff of the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina from 2006 to 2008.[1] He has served as the Bosnia and Herzegovina Ambassador to Bulgaria as well.[2]

Early life and education

Podžić was born in Žepa, SFR Yugoslavia, present-day Bosnia and Herzegovina, on 1 May 1959. He earned an MS in diplomacy and a PhD from the Faculty of Political Sciences at the University of Sarajevo.[3]

Minister of Defence (2019–2023)

Appointment

See also: Cabinet of Zoran Tegeltija

On 23 December 2019, Podžić was appointed by the Democratic Front as Minister of Defence in the government of Zoran Tegeltija.[4]

Tenure

On 14 July 2021, Podžić and the Bosnian Foreign Minister Bisera Turković met with NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in Brussels.[5]

In August 2021, Bosnian Presidency members Željko Komšić and Šefik Džaferović, without including third member Milorad Dodik, instructed the Ministry of Security to be available for putting out the wildfires in Herzegovina which had formed a few days before.[6] This came after Dodik refused to give consent on the Bosnian Armed Forces to use its military helicopters to help in putting out the fires, because the consent of all three members of the Presidency is required for the military force's helicopters to be used.[7] On 19 August, Dodik justified himself saying that the "Helicopters are 40–50 years old. The people flying them have courage. Of course, that is not the only reason why I did not participate in the Presidency sessions. That reason is well known and it will remain so."[8] However, on 23 August, Podžić reacted to Dodik's statement, saying "The helicopters are perfectly fine, the only reason they didn't help in putting out the fires is Dodik."[9]

In October 2021, Podžić canceled a military exercise between the Serbian Army and the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina due to the "bad COVID-19 epidemiological situation in the country and because of the small number of vaccinated members of the Armed Forces."[10] This was met with outrage by Chairman of the Council of Ministers Zoran Tegeltija, who sent a request for the removal of Podžić as minister to the national Parliament.[11] Some days later, he submitted the decision on the dismissal of Podžić to the House of Representatives.[12] On 26 October, the majority of the House of Representatives members voted against Tegeltija's decision and did not support Podžić's dismissal.[13]

Podžić was succeeded as Minister of Defence by Zukan Helez on 25 January 2023, following the formation of a new government presided over by Borjana Krišto.[14]

Personal life

Podžić is married and has two children.[3] Besides his native Bosnian, he speaks English and Slovene fluently.[3]

Health

On 17 October 2022, Podžić was rushed to hospital and had emergency surgery to remove a blood clot in his abdominal aorta.[15] He was placed into the intensive care unit the next day.[16] Podžić recovered and was discharged from hospital on 21 October.[17]

References

  1. ^ F. Tomić (18 May 2008). "Deset na jednu uniformu". Večernje novosti. Retrieved 1 January 2011.
  2. ^ "Sifet Podžić". parlament.ba. Retrieved 17 February 2020.
  3. ^ a b c "Sifet Podžić". vijeceministara.gov.ba (in Bosnian). Retrieved 17 December 2022.
  4. ^ Er.M. (23 December 2019). "Počela sjednica o imenovanju Vijeća ministara BiH" (in Bosnian). Klix.ba. Retrieved 23 December 2019.
  5. ^ M.G. (14 July 2021). "Turković i Podžić danas u sjedištu NATO-a o koracima BiH u okviru Akcijskog plana za članstvo" (in Bosnian). Klix.ba. Retrieved 14 July 2021.
  6. ^ N.V. (13 August 2021). "Predsjedništvo bez Dodika zadužilo Ministarstvo sigurnosti da bude na raspolaganju za gašenje požara" (in Bosnian). Klix.ba. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
  7. ^ D.Be. (12 August 2021). "Dok bukte požari u Hercegovini čeka se Dodikova saglasnost za angažovanje helikoptera OSBiH" (in Bosnian). Klix.ba. Retrieved 12 August 2021.
  8. ^ B.R. (19 August 2021). "Dodik se pokušao opravdati: Helikopteri Oružanih snaga su na ivici ispravnosti" (in Bosnian). Klix.ba. Retrieved 19 August 2021.
  9. ^ M.G. (23 August 2021). "Podžić: Helikopteri su ispravni, jedini razlog što nisu gasili požare je Dodik" (in Bosnian). Klix.ba. Retrieved 23 August 2021.
  10. ^ "Otkazana vojna vježba Srbije i BiH na Manjači" (in Bosnian). balkans.aljazeera.net. 4 October 2021. Retrieved 4 October 2021.
  11. ^ D.Be. (5 October 2021). "Tegeltija uputio zahtjev za smjenu Podžića u Parlament BiH, iako političari iz RS-a bojkotuju sjednice" (in Bosnian). Klix.ba. Retrieved 5 October 2021.
  12. ^ B.T. (14 October 2021). "Tegeltija u Parlament BiH dostavio odluku o smjeni Podžića: "Narušava unutrašnje povjerenje"" (in Bosnian). Klix.ba. Retrieved 14 October 2021.
  13. ^ "Zastupnici u Parlamentu BiH odbili podržati smjenu ministra Podžića". bljesak.info (in Bosnian). 26 October 2021. Retrieved 26 October 2021.
  14. ^ 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.
  15. ^ "Poznat uzrok hospitalizacije ministra odbrane Sifeta Podžića" (in Bosnian). Klix.ba. 17 October 2022. Retrieved 17 October 2022.
  16. ^ "Nakon hitne operacije: Poznato kakvo je zdravstveno stanje ministra Sifeta Podžića". oslobodjenje.ba (in Bosnian). 18 October 2022. Retrieved 18 October 2022.
  17. ^ S.Š.U. (21 October 2022). "Ministar odbrane BiH Sifet Podžić izašao iz bolnice, osjeća se dobro" (in Bosnian). Klix.ba. Retrieved 21 October 2022.
Political offices
Preceded by Minister of Defence
2019–2023 		Succeeded by