# Ministry of Defence (Bosnia and Herzegovina)

The Ministry of Defence of Bosnia and Herzegovina (Serbo-Croatian: Ministarstvo odbrane Bosne i Hercegovine / Министарство одбране Босне и Херцеговине) is the governmental department in charge of the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina and protection of Bosnia and Herzegovina from invasion and threats.

## History

Prior to the creation of the Ministry of Defence of Bosnia and Herzegovina, from 1945 to 1992, the Ministry of Defence of Yugoslavia was responsible for the defence of the entire Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, while Bosnia and Herzegovina had its territorial defence.
Following the independence of Bosnia and Herzegovina from Yugoslavia in 1992, the Ministry of Defence of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina was formed, with Munib Bisić being appointed minister, who had the newly formed Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina at his disposal. This ministry played a key role in defending Bosnia and Herzegovina from aggressors and paramilitary units inside and outside Bosnia and Herzegovina during the Bosnian War. In addition to the Ministry of Defence of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina, there were two other Ministries of Defence in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Ministry of Defence of the Republika Srpska and the Ministry of Defence of Herzeg-Bosnia.
After the signing of the Dayton Agreement in December 1995 and the end of the Bosnian War, the Army of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina was formed by merging the Croatian Defence Council (Ministry of Defence of Herzeg-Bosnia) with the Bosniak Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina (Ministry of Defence of the Republic of Bosnia-Herzegovina).
Ten years later, on 1 December 2005, the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina were formed by merging the Army of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina and the Army of Republika Srpska, under one ministry.
Since 25 January 2023, Zukan Helez (SDP BiH) has been serving as Defence Minister of Bosnia and Herzegovina.

## Organization

The Ministry of Defence of Bosnia and Herzegovina consists of eight sectors and six offices, three of which are religious services.
* Inspectorate General
* Policy and Plans Sector
* Sector for International Cooperation
* Sector for Intelligence and Security Affairs
* Sector for command, control and communications, computers and information management
* Personnel Management Department
* Procurement and Logistics Sector
* Finance and Budget Sector
* Internal Audit Office
* Public Relations Office
* Department for general and joint affairs
* Office of the Military Mufti
* Office of Orthodox Pastoral Care
* Office of Catholic Pastoral Care

## List of ministers
### Ministers of Defence of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina (1992–1996)

Political parties:  Party of Democratic Action (SDA)
| No. | Portrait | Minister of Defence | Took office | Left office | Time in office | Party |
| 1 | | Bisić, MunibMunib Bisić (1957–2009) | 15 April 1992 | 30 January 1996 | 3 years, 290 days | SDA |

### Ministers of Defence of Bosnia and Herzegovina (2004–present)

Political parties:  Serb Democratic Party (SDS)  Party of Democratic Action (SDA)  Social Democratic Party (SDP BiH)  Croatian Democratic Union of Bosnia and Herzegovina (HDZ BiH)  Democratic Front (DF)
| No. | Minister of Defence | Took office | Left office | Time in office | Party |
| 1 | Radovanović, NikolaNikola Radovanović (born 1960) | 9 March 2004 | 11 January 2007 | 2 years, 331 days | SDS |
| 2 | Cikotić, SelmoSelmo Cikotić (born 1964) | 11 January 2007 (officially on 22 April 2007) | 12 January 2012 | 5 years, 1 day | SDA |
| 3 | Ibrahimović, MuhamedMuhamed Ibrahimović (born 1960) | 12 January 2012 | 22 November 2012 | 286 days | SDA |
| 4 | Osmić, ZekerijahZekerijah Osmić (born 1956) | 22 November 2012 | 31 March 2015 | 2 years, 129 days | SDP BiH |
| 5 | Pendeš, MarinaMarina Pendeš (born 1964) | 31 March 2015 | 23 December 2019 | 4 years, 267 days | HDZ BiH |
| 6 | Podžić, SifetSifet Podžić (born 1959) | 23 December 2019 | 25 January 2023 | 3 years, 33 days | DF |
| 7 | Helez, ZukanZukan Helez (born 1964) | 25 January 2023 | Incumbent | 2 years, 21 days | SDP BiH |
    Source: Rulers.org