Dragomir Karić

Dragomir "Dragan" Karić (Serbian Cyrillic: Драгомир Драган Карић; born 21 October 1949) is an entrepreneur and politician in Serbia. A close ally of his younger brother Bogoljub Karić, he has been a prominent figure in Serbia's business community since the 1980s. He has served in the National Assembly of Serbia since 2012 as a member of the Strength of Serbia Movement (Pokret snaga Srbije, PSS).

Karić in 2017

Early life and career

Karić was born in Peć, Kosovo and Metohija, in what was then the People's Republic of Serbia in the Federal People's Republic of Yugoslavia. He graduated from the University of Belgrade Faculty of Organizational Sciences in 1972. Karić later received a Ph.D. from the Institute of Agrarian Economics at the Ukrainian Academy of Agronomy Sciences in 1994, was a founder of the International University of Business and Management in Moscow, and holds a number of academic positions.[1]

Entrepreneur

The Karić family was one of the richest in Serbia during the 1990s. More recent reports suggest that their wealth and influence, though reduced, remain significant.[2] A prominent member of the Braća Karić (Brothers Karić) group and its affiliated companies, Karić has overseen several business initiatives in Russia, Eastern Europe, the Commonwealth of Independent States, and other countries.[3] Since 2014, he has played a leading role in the Minsk-Mir project in Belarus.[4]

International diplomacy

NATO bombing of Yugoslavia

During the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)'s 1999 bombing of Yugoslavia, Karić attended meetings of Russian and American legislators in Vienna in an effort to bring about a peace deal. American representatives Curt Weldon and Bernie Sanders both described Karić as having played an important role in the discussions, with Sanders noting that he "spoke with [Yugoslav president] Milošević repeatedly during the discussions, urging him to take the first step by releasing [three American] POWs." Members of the American team have credited Karić with bringing about the soldiers' release.[5][6][7] The negotiating teams reached an arrangement that would have seen a stop to NATO's bombing campaign, the withdrawal of Yugoslav troops from Kosovo, and the introduction of a United Nations peacekeeping force in the province.[8] Ultimately, the initiative was vetoed by the United States Department of State.[9] During this time, Karić also took part in confidential peace talks with German foreign affairs minister Joschka Fischer.[10]

At the conclusion of the conflict, Karić negotiated with various authorities in Russia for the reconstruction of Serbian infrastructure that had been destroyed by NATO bombing.[11][12]

Curt Weldon later sought to bring Karić to the 2003 National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, D.C.. The State Department and Immigration and Naturalization Service officials refused Karić entry on the grounds that he was prohibited from travelling to European countries.[13] Weldon acknowledged having received unflattering information about the Karić family from American intelligence sources, though he offered the view that the brothers provided support for the Milošević regime under duress and were unfairly maligned for their actions.[14]

Representative of Belarus

Karić was appointed as an envoy of the Belarusian Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Serbia in 2009.[15] In 2012, Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko credited him for "significant personal contribution to the development of trade and economic ties and the strengthening of friendly relations between Belarus and Serbia."[16]

Jovan Vraniškovski

In August 2005, Karić met with Patriarch Alexy II of Moscow in a bid to secure the release of Archbishop of Ohrid Jovan Vraniškovski from a prison in Macedonia. Patriarch Alexy gave his support to Karić's efforts.[17]

Politician

Karić joined his brother Bogoljub's Strength of Serbia Movement on its formation in 2004 and led the party's electoral list for the City Assembly of Belgrade in the 2004 Serbian local elections.[18] The list won five mandates,[19] and he subsequently served as part of its city assembly delegation.[20] He appeared in the third position on the party's list in the 2008 local elections,[21] in which the party did not cross the threshold to win any mandates.[22]

The SSP fielded its own electoral list for the national assembly in the 2007 and 2008 parliamentary elections, and Karić appeared on the party's list both times.[23] In each instance, the list failed to cross the threshold to win representation in the assembly.

Parliamentarian

The Strength of Serbia Movement contested the 2012 parliamentary election as part of the Serbian Progressive Party's Let's Get Serbia Moving list. Karić received the thirty-seventh position and was elected when the alliance won seventy-three mandates.[24] The Progressive Party emerged as the head of a coalition government after this election, and Karić served as part of its parliamentary majority. The Strength of Serbia Movement's alliance with the Progressive Party continued into the 2014 and 2016 elections; Karić was included on its list both times and was re-elected when the Progressive-led alliance won majority victories.[25]

Karić was an observer for the 2015 Kazakhstani presidential election, which he described as having "high democratic standards."[26] He also observed the 2015 Belarusian presidential election and the 2016 Belarusian parliamentary election and reached the same conclusion; on the former occasion, he was quoted as saying that in Belarus, "there is freedom, there is democracy and there is no disorder, which is the most important thing."[27]

During the 2016–20 sitting of the assembly, Karić was a member of the parliamentary committee on the economy, regional development, trade, tourism, and energy, as well as serving as a deputy member of the committee on Kosovo-Metohija. He chaired several of Serbia's parliamentary friendship groups, including those with Angola, Bahrain, Belarus, Bhutan, Burundi, Chile, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Djibouti, El Salvador, Ethiopia, Fiji, The Gambia, Guyana, Kuwait, Latvia, Malawi, Micronesia, Namibia, Nepal, Oman, the Philippines, Rwanda, Sierra Leone,[28] Tajikistan, Tunisia, Uganda, Vietnam, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. In addition to this, he was a member of Serbia's parliamentary friendship groups with Albania, Algeria, Argentina, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Cape Verde, China, Croatia, Cuba, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Egypt, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Israel, Italy, Japan, Kazakhstan, Lesotho, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Mexico, Moldova, Montenegro, Morocco, the Netherlands, North Macedonia, Norway, Palestine, Poland, Qatar, Romania, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Slovakia, Slovenia, South Korea, the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, Spain, the countries of Sub-Saharan Africa, Sweden, Switzerland, Syria, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, the United Arab Emirates, and Venezuela. He served in the Progressive Party's parliamentary group.[29]

In 2019, it was reported that Karić was writing a book on Aleksandar Čepurin, Russia's outgoing ambassador to Serbia.[30]

Karić received the twenty-sixth position on the Progressive Party's Aleksandar Vučić — For Our Children electoral list for the 2020 Serbian parliamentary election[31] and was returned for a fourth term when the list won a landslide victory with 188 mandates. He continues to serve on the committee for the economy, regional development, trade, tourism and energy, lead the parliamentary friendship group with Belarus, and serve on almost all of the other friendship groups that he either led or belonged to in the previous parliament.[32]

References
  1. DRAGOMIR KARIĆ, Otvoreni Parlament, accessed 25 August 2017.
  2. "Serb businessman proposes Kosovo conference in Belgrade," Associated Press Newswires, 17 May 1999; "Businessman reportedly wants to return to Serbia to "clear his name" in court," British Broadcasting Corporation Monitoring European, 18 April 2014 (Source: Vecernje novosti website, Belgrade, in Serbian 14 Apr 14).
  3. "Yugoslav firm plans participation in Kyrgyzstan dam construction," British Broadcasting Corporation Monitoring European - Economic, 9 March 1999 (Source: Beta news agency, Belgrade, in English 0649 gmt 4 Mar 99); "Serbian firms' building plans in Belarus worth 'several billion euros'," British Broadcasting Corporation Monitoring European, 30 May 2009 (Source: Politika website, Belgrade, in Serbian 27 May 09); "Young Bosnians find jobs as construction workers in Russia, Azerbaijan," British Broadcasting Corporation Monitoring European, 4 July 2008 (Source: Slobodna Bosna, Sarajevo, in Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian 26 Jun 08 pp 34-37); "Businessman reportedly wants to return to Serbia to "clear his name" in court," British Broadcasting Corporation Monitoring European, 18 April 2014.
  4. "Construction of Minsk-Mir project to begin in September or October, says head of Minsk city government," BelaPAN, 7 September 2015; "Civil engineering projects Minsk Mir, Mayak Minsk with Serbian investments stay on schedule," Belarus: Daily News, 30 March 2016.
  5. "U.S. official says Belgrade favorably views outline for Kosovo peace deal," Associated Press Newswire, 2 May 1999.
  6. "Three US Servicemen Freed, Serbs Claim F-16 Shot Down," Business Day, 4 May 1999.
  7. "Serb businessman proposes Kosovo conference in Belgrade," Associated Press Newswires, 17 May 1999.
  8. James Ridgeway, "Mondo Washington," Village Voice, 11 May 1999, p. 32.
  9. Clarence J. Robinson Jr., "Fusion center concept takes root as Congressional interest waxes," Signal, 1 April 2000.
  10. Matthew Campbell and Stephen Grey, "Papering over the cracks - War in Europe," Sunday Times, 23 May 1999.
  11. "Moscow mayor vows to replace bridge in Serbia's Novi Sad," British Broadcasting Corporation Monitoring Newsfile, 11 June 1999 (Source: ITAR-TASS news agency, Moscow, in English 11 Jun 99).
  12. "NIZHNY NOVGOROD EXPERTS TO HELP REBUILD YUGOSLAV REFINERY," Petroleum Report, 22 July 1999.
  13. Al Kamen, "Knees Under the Desk, or the Dash," Washington Post, 10 February 2003, A19.
  14. Mark Fazlollah and John Shiffman, "Karen Weldon's ties to Serbs detailed," Philadelphia Inquirer, 2 November 2006.
  15. "Belarus appoints Serbian businessman as trade envoy to Belgrade," British Broadcasting Corporation Monitoring European, 19 May 2009.
  16. "Lukashenka extends official presidential thanks to representative of Belarusian Chamber of Commerce and Industry in Serbia," BelaPAN, 26 December 2012.
  17. "Russian patriarch upset by "attempt to deepen split" between Serbia, Macedonia," British Broadcasting Corporation Monitoring European, 13 August 2005 (Source: BKTV, Belgrade, in Serbian 1355 gmt 13 Aug 05).
  18. Službeni List (Grada Beograda), Volume 48 Number 24 (8 September 2004), p. 19.
  19. Službeni List (Grada Beograda), Volume 48 Number 27 (20 September 2004), p. 1.
  20. Službeni List (Grada Beograda), Volume 48 Number 34 (29 November 2004), p. 1.
  21. Službeni List (Grada Beograda), Volume 52 Number 12 (30 April 2008), p. 9.
  22. Službeni List (Grada Beograda), Volume 52 Number 18 (22 May 2008), p. 1.
  23. See Избори за народне посланике Народне скупштине одржани 21. јануара и 8. фебрауара 2007. године, ИЗБОРНЕ ЛИСТЕ (Покрет снага Србије - Богољуб Карић) Archived 2018-04-30 at the Wayback Machine, Republika Srbija - Republička izborna komisija, accessed 25 August 2017; and Избори за народне посланике Народне скупштине одржани 11. маја 2008. године, ИЗБОРНЕ ЛИСТЕ (Покрет СНАГА СРБИЈЕ - Богољуб Карић) Archived 2018-04-30 at the Wayback Machine, Republika Srbija - Republička izborna komisija, accessed 25 August 2017. Karić received the last (250th) position on the list in 2007 and the first position in 2008. His numerical position on the list was, in any event, irrelevant to his chances of election. From 2000 to 2011, parliamentary mandates were awarded to lists rather than to individual candidates, and it was a common practice for mandates to be awarded out of numerical order. See Law on the Election of Representatives, Official Gazette of the Republic of Serbia, No. 35/2000, made available via LegislationOnline, accessed 28 February 2017.
  24. Избори за народне посланике Народне скупштине, 6. мај 2012. године, ИЗБОРНЕ ЛИСТЕ (POKRENIMO SRBIJU - TOMISLAV NIKOLIĆ) Archived 2017-09-11 at the Wayback Machine, Republika Srbija - Republička izborna komisija, accessed 26 January 2017.
  25. Karić received the fifty-ninth position on the list in 2015 and the 104th position in 2016. See Избори за народне посланике Народне скупштине одржани 16. и 23. марта 2014. године, ИЗБОРНЕ ЛИСТЕ (ALEKSANDAR VUČIĆ - BUDUĆNOST U KOJU VERUJEMO) Archived 2018-05-06 at the Wayback Machine, Republika Srbija - Republička izborna komisija, accessed 26 January 2017; and Избори за народне посланике 2016. године » Изборне листе (АЛЕКСАНДАР ВУЧИЋ - СРБИЈА ПОБЕЂУЈЕ) Archived 2018-04-27 at the Wayback Machine, Republika Srbija - Republička izborna komisija, accessed 17 February 2017.
  26. "Nazarbayev announces five "important" measures if reelected," EFE News Service, 26 April 2015. Karić was also an observer for the 2016 Kazakhstani legislative election, which he described as being fair and "like a holiday" for voters. See "Kazakhstanis treat elections like holiday - Serbian observer," Kazinform International News Agency, 20 March 2016.
  27. "Serbian observer: Belarusians should take pride in this election," Belarus: Daily News, 12 October 2015; "Observer from Serbia expects high turnout in Belarus parliamentary elections," Belarus: Daily News, 9 September 2016.
  28. In March 2020, Karić welcomed a decision by the government of Sierra Leone to withdraw recognition of the Republic of Kosovo. See "Dragomir J. Karić, predsednik Parlamentarne grupe prijateljstva sa Sijera Leoneom: Povlačenje priznanja Kosova je veliki uspeh Srbije", Blic, 3 March 2020, accessed 7 July 2020.
  29. DRAGOMIR KARIC, National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia, accessed 25 June 2020.
  30. "Dragomir Karić piše knjigu o Aleksandru Čepurinu", Radio Television of Vojvodina, 13 June 2019, accessed 7 July 2020.
  31. "Ko je sve na listi SNS za republičke poslanike?", Danas, 6 March 2020, accessed 30 June 2020.
  32. DRAGOMIR KARIC, National Assembly of the Republic Serbia, accessed 10 December 2020. As of this date, the only parliamentary friendship groups that Karić was a member of in the previous parliament but no longer holds membership in are those with Lithuania (whose group has been disestablished), Moldova, and Tajikistan.
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