Speaker

Born in Đakovica/Gjakova, Kosovo, in 1961, Miodrag Vlahović is a distinguished lawyer and diplomat with significant contributions to international relations and human rights. He holds a law degree from the University of Montenegro and completed post-graduate studies at Leiden University in the Netherlands.

In 1985, Vlahović founded the STUDEKS Cultural Center in Podgorica. He served as International Secretary and a member of the federal presidency of the Socialist Youth Union of Yugoslavia (SSOJ) from 1986 to 1988. He was a key figure in the Montenegrin peace movement, founding the Citizens Committee for Peace and organizing Montenegro’s first peace rally in 1991. Vlahović also held roles as International Secretary of the Liberal Alliance of Montenegro (LSCG) and as a Member of Parliament from 1992 to 1994.

He co-founded the Center for Democracy & Human Rights (CEDEM) in 1998 and directed the Center for Regional Studies (CeRS) from 1999. From 2004 to 2006, Vlahović served as Montenegro’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, and then as Ambassador to the USA, Canada, and Iceland from 2006 to 2010. Later, he was Ambassador to the Holy See and the Sovereign Military Order of Malta from 2017 to 2021.

Vlahović was President of the Montenegrin Democratic Union (Cdu) from 2014 to 2016 and has been a columnist for “Pobjeda” daily. Since August 2021, he has led the Montenegrin Helsinki Committee for Human Rights.