Reuf Bajrović (born 13 July 1977) is a
Bosniak
The Bosniaks (, Cyrillic script, Cyrillic: Бошњаци, ; , ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to the Southeast European historical region of Bosnia (region), Bosnia, today part of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and who sha ...
politician and policy analyst who is presently the Vice President of the US-Europe Alliance in Washington, DC, and a Fellow at Foreign Policy Research Institute.
Bajrović was appointed as Minister of Energy, Mining and Industry of the
Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina
The Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (Serbo-Croatian: ''Federacija Bosne i Hercegovine'' / ''Федерација Босне и Херцеговине'') is one of the two Political divisions of Bosnia and Herzegovina, entities composing Bo ...
in the first cabinet of
Fadil Novalić in 2015. His tenure as the Minister was shaped by his decision to send the Financial Police to all state-owned enterprises, especially those in the highly corrupt energy sector. Bajrović resigned after the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina Government blocked his attempts to disrupt the patronage system and appoint independent experts to key management positions in state-owned companies.
In April 2016, Bajrović created a new civically oriented party called
Civic Alliance. At the October 2016 local elections, Civic Alliance won the mayorship in
Bihać
Bihać is a city and the administrative centre of Una-Sana Canton of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosnia and Herzegovina. It is situated on the banks of river Una (Sava), Una in northwestern Bosnia and Herzegovina, in th ...
and council seats in other parts of the country.
Bajrović resigned as the party president and supported the appointment of new leadership at the party congress in September 2017, citing the need for new faces in the country's political life.
Previously, Bajrović led the ''Emerging Democracies Institute'', a think tank in Washington, DC. Also, Bajrović was one of the architects of SDP BiH's election victory in 2010 as a close advisor of
Zlatko Lagumdžija
Zlatko Lagumdžija (born 26 December 1955) is a Bosnian diplomat and politician serving as List of current permanent representatives to the United Nations, Permanent Representative of Bosnia and Herzegovina to the United Nations since July 2023. ...
.
Bajrović supports the American
Democratic Party. He publicly campaigned for
Hillary Clinton
Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...
in
2016
2016 was designated as:
* International Year of Pulses by the sixty-eighth session of the United Nations General Assembly.
* International Year of Global Understanding (IYGU) by the International Council for Science (ICSU), the Internationa ...
and
Joe Biden
Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...
in
2020
The year 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of even ...
during the Iowa caucuses, where he served as a precinct captain for the campaign in Des Moines.
He made numerous media and public appearances including participating in several briefings at the United States Congress related to the Western Balkans and testifying before the Joint Committee on European Affairs of the Oireachtas, Ireland's National Parliament. Bajrovic’s op-eds and feature articles have appeared in The National Interest, Haaretz, The American Interest, Just Security, Tampa Bay Times, El Pais, Die Zeit, and other online and print media in the U.S., Europe, and the Middle East. He is a frequent commentator for major international media, including The New York Times, Financial Times, Wall Street Journal, TIME Magazine, Newsweek, PBS Newshour, and Al Jazeera English, among others. His academic and policy research was published by the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), Foreign Policy Research Institute (FPRI), Open Society Institute, Center for Policy and Governance (CPU), and Heinrich Boll Stiftung. He gave lectures at the
Foreign Service Institute
The Foreign Service Institute (FSI) is the United States federal government's primary training institution for members of the U.S. foreign service community, preparing American diplomats as well as other professionals to advance U.S. foreign ...
at the U.S. Department of State, as well as at Columbia, New York, American and other universities. In 2017, Bajrovic has signed the
Declaration on the Common Language
The Declaration on the Common Language ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, Deklaracija o zajedničkom jeziku, Декларација о заједничком језику, separator=" / ") was issued in 2017 by a group of intellectuals and NGOs from Bosnia and He ...
of the
Croats
The Croats (; , ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina and other neighboring countries in Central Europe, Central and Southeastern Europe who share a common Croatian Cultural heritage, ancest ...
,
Serbs
The Serbs ( sr-Cyr, Срби, Srbi, ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to Southeastern Europe who share a common Serbian Cultural heritage, ancestry, Culture of Serbia, culture, History of Serbia, history, and Serbian lan ...
,
Bosniaks
The Bosniaks (, Cyrillic script, Cyrillic: Бошњаци, ; , ) are a South Slavs, South Slavic ethnic group native to the Southeast European historical region of Bosnia (region), Bosnia, today part of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and who sha ...
and
Montenegrins
Montenegrins (, or ) are a South Slavic ethnic group that share a common ancestry, culture, history, and language, identified with the country of Montenegro.
Montenegrins are mostly Orthodox Christians; however, the population also includes ...
.
Biography
Bajrović escaped with his family from Sarajevo on 11 April 1992, in the early stages of the Bosnian war.
Mr. Bajrovic lived two and a half years in Turkey as a refugee, before leaving to the USA in 199
He attended Seneca High School and the University of Louisville in Louisville, Kentucky. He also completed an MA in European Integration at the University of Bologna in 2002.
Bajrović's father, Remzija stayed in Sarajevo from 1992 to 1994 performing a complex operation on severely wounded citizens of Sarajevo as a renowned medical professional (orthopaedist). He was remembered as one of the many "Heroes in white" deserving gratitude of from the clinic and colleagues he was working with, as well as many citizens of Sarajev
References
External links
*http://www.nap.ba/new/vijest.php?id=12014
*https://www.oireachtas.ie/en/debates/debate/joint_committee_on_european_affairs/2009-09-08/2/?*highlight%5B0%5D=reuf&highlight%5B1%5D=bajrovic
*https://www.bu.edu/pardeeschool/2019/04/08/garcevic-speaks-on-capitol-hill-on-democracy-in-the-western-balkans/
*http://balkans.aljazeera.net/vijesti/df-suljagic-i-bajrovic-izbaceni-ostavka-podzica
*https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QccsyPMO9og
*https://harriman.columbia.edu/event/2014-general-election-bosnia-and-herzegovina-opportunity-new-beginning
pbs.org*https://wikileaks.org/clinton-emails/Clinton_Email_October_Release/C05790533.pdf
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bajrović, Reuf
1977 births
Living people
Politicians from Sarajevo
Politicians of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Signatories of the Declaration on the Common Language