Milo Đukanović, Montenegrin politician, 29th Prime Minister of Montenegro
Milo Đukanović (Montenegrin: Мило Ђукановић, pronounced [mǐːlo dʑǔkanoʋitɕ] (listen); born 15 February 1962) is a Montenegrin politician serving as the President of Montenegro since 2018, previously serving in the role from 1998 to 2003.
He also served as the Prime Minister of Montenegro (1991–1998, 2003–2006, 2008–2010 and 2012–2016) and is the long-term president of the Democratic Party of Socialists of Montenegro, originally the Montenegrin branch of the League of Communists of Yugoslavia, which governed Montenegro alone or in a coalition from the introduction of multi-party politics in the early 1990s until its defeat in the 2020 parliamentary election.
When Đukanović first emerged on the political scene, he was a close ally of Slobodan Milošević during the anti-bureaucratic revolution (1988–1989) and the dissolution of SFR Yugoslavia (1991–1992). His cabinet actively participated in the siege of Dubrovnik (1991–1992). Đukanović supported Momir Bulatović's agreement on Lord Carrington's terms, which resulted in the 1992 Montenegrin independence referendum, where voters decided to remain in FR Yugoslavia. In 1996, however, Đukanović distanced himself from Milošević and the federal government, abandoning the traditional joint Serbian and Montenegrin vision in favour of Montenegrin nationalism, which supported the state independence and a separate Montenegrin identity. That led to the division of the party and the split of the Bulatović's pro-unionist faction. Shortly afterward, Đukanović defeated Bulatović in the 1997 presidential election by a thin margin. In 1999, he negotiated with western countries in an attempt to limit airstrikes in Montenegro during the NATO bombing of Yugoslavia, while later Đukanović oversaw the implementation of the Deutsche Mark as the new currency in Montenegro, replacing the Yugoslav dinar.
Following the overthrow of Milošević (2000), he signed an agreement with the new Serbian government that led to the Constitutional Charter of Serbia and Montenegro (2003), which allowed for Montenegrin independence. Three years later, the 2006 independence referendum led to a formal separation from the state union and the proclamation of the new Constitution of Montenegro (2007). Đukanović has pursued NATO and EU accession policy, resulting in Montenegro's NATO membership in 2017. Over the course of his premiership and presidency, he oversaw the privatization of public companies to foreign investors and firms. Several corruption scandals of the ruling party triggered 2019 anti-government protests, while a controversial religion law sparked another wave of protests. For the first time in three decades, in the 2020 parliamentary election, the opposition won more votes than Đukanović's ruling party and its partners.
Some observers have described Đukanović's rule as authoritarian or autocratic, as well as a kleptocracy. In 2020, the Freedom House classified Montenegro as a hybrid regime rather than a democracy, mentioning the years of increasing state capture, abuse of power, and strongman tactics employed by Đukanović. He is often described as having strong links to the Montenegrin mafia. Đukanović was listed among the twenty richest world leaders according to the British newspaper The Independent in May 2010, which described the source of his estimated £10 million wealth as "mysterious". In October 2021, Đukanović and his son Blažo were mentioned in Pandora Papers, linking them to two trusts on British Virgin Islands.