Sreten Žujović ( sr-cyr, Сретен Жујовић; 24 June 1899 – 11 June 1976) was a

Serbian Serbian may refer to: * someone or something related to Serbia, a country in Southeastern Europe * someone or something related to the Serbs, a South Slavic people * Serbian language * Serbian names See also

* * * Old Serbian (disambiguat ...

and Yugoslav politician and

veteran A veteran () is a person who has significant experience (and is usually adept and esteemed) and expertise in a particular occupation or field. A military veteran is a person who is no longer serving in a military. A military veteran that has ...

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and long-time

communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

Biography

He was born into a wealthy family, and was a Serb by nationality. In early childhood he moved to Belgrade, where he completed his primary and secondary education. At the start of the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, he was in Belgrade, but he did not join the Serbian army, but the

French Foreign Legion The French Foreign Legion (french: Légion étrangère) is a corps of the French Army which comprises several specialties: infantry, Armoured Cavalry Arm, cavalry, Military engineering, engineers, Airborne forces, airborne troops. It was created ...

, after which he was sent to the

Western Front Western Front or West Front may refer to: Military frontiers *Western Front (World War I), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (World War II), a military frontier to the west of Germany *Western Front (Russian Empire), a majo ...

, where he fought against the German troops. After his return from the war, he became involved in the labor movement and organized trade unions. Žujović first joined the Communist Party of Yugoslavia (KPJ) at the age of 25 in 1924 in Belgrade, and worked as an organizer there before becoming a secretary of the party. When the communists became a threat to the

Kingdom of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Yugoslavia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Kraljevina Jugoslavija, Краљевина Југославија; sl, Kraljevina Jugoslavija) was a state in Southeast Europe, Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 unt ...

, he was arrested and released but kept under surveillance by the police. In 1933 Žujević left the Kingdom of Yugoslavia for the USSR where he became a recipient of a Communist scholarship in the Comintern school. Among the students at the school were his Belgrade colleagues,

Rodoljub Čolaković Rodoljub "Roćko" Čolaković ( sr-cyr, Родољуб Чолаковић; 7 June 1900 – 30 March 1983) was a Yugoslav politician and writer who served as the 1st Prime Minister of PR Bosnia and Herzegovina and as the Minister for PR Bosnia ...

and Milan Gorkić. Gorkić, the KPJ's general secretary, was summoned to Moscow in 1936 from Paris and upon his arrival was deposed and jailed in Lubyanka, only to be executed the following year, in 1937. Marshal Tito during the Second World War in Yugoslavia, May 1944

Marshal Tito during the Second World War in Yugoslavia, May 1944

Žujović was a member of Yugoslav delegation at a

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

Conference on International Organization. The delegates drew up the 111-article Charter, which was adopted unanimously on 25 June 1945 in the

San Francisco Opera House The War Memorial Opera House is an opera house in San Francisco, California, located on the western side of Van Ness Avenue across from the west side/rear facade of the San Francisco City Hall. It is part of the San Francisco War Memorial and P ...

. He was a member of the Central Committee and the Politburo before

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

. He helped organize the Partisan

uprising Rebellion, uprising, or insurrection is a refusal of obedience or order. It refers to the open resistance against the orders of an established authority. A rebellion originates from a sentiment of indignation and disapproval of a situation and ...

Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...

in 1941 and became a member of the Supreme Staff.

Minister of Finance A finance minister is an executive or cabinet position in charge of one or more of government finances, economic policy and financial regulation. A finance minister's portfolio has a large variety of names around the world, such as "treasury", " ...

in the postwar government, he lost his party membership and high office when he sided with

Joseph Stalin Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin (born Ioseb Besarionis dze Jughashvili; – 5 March 1953) was a Georgian revolutionary and Soviet political leader who led the Soviet Union from 1924 until his death in 1953. He held power as General Secreta ...

against

Josip Broz Tito Josip Broz ( sh-Cyrl, Јосип Броз, ; 7 May 1892 – 4 May 1980), commonly known as Tito (; sh-Cyrl, Тито, links=no, ), was a Yugoslav communist revolutionary and statesman, serving in various positions from 1943 until his deat ...

in 1948 during the

Informbiro period The Informbiro period was an era of Yugoslavia's history following the Tito–Stalin split in mid-1948 that lasted until the country's partial rapprochement with the Soviet Union in 1955 with the signing of the Belgrade declaration. After Wor ...

. He was put under house arrest and was then imprisoned. He was forced to conduct self-criticism and was eventually released from prison in 1950 and reinstated in the party.