Željana Zovko
Željana Zovko | |
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Member of the European Parliament for Croatia | |
Assumed office 21 November 2016 | |
Personal details | |
Born | Mostar, SR Bosnia and Herzegovina, SFR Yugoslavia | 25 March 1970
Citizenship | ![]() ![]() |
Nationality | Croat |
Political party | HDZ BiH, HDZ |
Alma mater | University of North London |
Awards | Crosses of Military Merit with White Decoration (2012) |
Željana Zovko (born 25 March 1970 in Mostar) is a Bosnian Croat diplomat and politician. Since 2016, she has been serving as a member of the European Parliament from Croatia.
Biography[]
Zovko studied French language at the University of North London in the 1990s.[1]
Political and diplomatic career in Bosnia and Herzegovina[]
Zovko came back to Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1999 to work as associate for public relations for the Croat member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina Ante Jelavić (HDZ BiH).[1] She then served as head of cabinet for Croat member of the Presidency of Bosnia and Herzegovina Dragan Čović (HDZ BiH) from 2002 till April 2004.[2]
With his political support, Zovko moved to the diplomatic service: Čović named her as resident ambassador of Bosnia and Herzegovina to France from April 2004 to 2008. She then moved on as Bosnian ambassador to Spain between 2008 and December 2011.[1]
In 2012 Zovko came back to Bosnian politics, serving until March 2015 as foreign affairs advisor for the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina Vjekoslav Bevanda (HDZ BiH).[1] In the same period she also served as international secretary for Bosnia and Herzegovina of Croatia's HDZ party.[2]
From August 2015 till November 2016 Zovko served as ambassador of Bosnia and Herzegovina to Italy.[1]
Member of the European Parliament from Croatia, 2016–present[]
In 2016, following the resignation of Andrej Plenkovic and Davor Ivo Stier who went on to form a new government in Croatia, and the refusal of to replace Stier, Zovko took up a place in the European Parliament as MEP for Croatia. Her switch of loyalties from the Bosnian diplomatic service to representing Croatian voters in the European Parliament raised criticisms in the press.[3] She was re-elected at the 2019 elections, and joined the Committee on Foreign Affairs (AFET), of which she was later elected vice-chair.[4] Zovko is a member of the parliamentary delegation for relations with Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Kosovo (DSEE), also having the citizenship of one of the countries at stake.[5]
In 2017 October, Zovko served as chief observer for the EU mission to Nepal during the 2017 Nepalese legislative election.[6]
In October 2020, she was elected as Vice-chair of the Foreign Affairs Committee.
Awards[]
Grand Cross of the Order of Military Merit (Spain) by King Juan Carlos I (2012)[2]
References[]
- ^ Jump up to: a b c d e "Željana ZOVKO - MEP | EPP Group in the European Parliament". www.eppgroup.eu.
- ^ Jump up to: a b c "Curriculum vitae | Željana ZOVKO | MEPs | European Parliament". www.europarl.europa.eu.
- ^ "Željana Zovko – Od ambasadorice BiH do hrvatske europarlamentarke" [Zeljana Zovko - From the Ambassador of BiH to the Croatian Parliament] (in Croatian). Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. 1 November 2016. Retrieved 12 September 2019.
- ^ "Željana Zovko elected as Vice-Chair in the Committee of Foreign Affairs". Željana Zovko. 26 October 2020.
- ^ "Home | Željana ZOVKO | MEPs | European Parliament". www.europarl.europa.eu.
- ^ "Fact Sheet - EU Election Observation Mission to Nepal". 2 November 2017. Retrieved 12 September 2019.
External links[]
- Living people
- 1970 births
- Croats of Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Croatian Democratic Union of Bosnia and Herzegovina politicians
- Croatian Democratic Union politicians
- Croatian Democratic Union MEPs
- Women MEPs for Croatia
- MEPs for Croatia 2014–2019
- Politicians from Mostar
- MEPs for Croatia 2019–2024