Ivan Karić (; born 19 September 1975) is a Serbian politician. He is the leader of the Greens of Serbia (Zeleni) and is currently serving his fifth term in the Serbian parliament. From 2017 to 2022, he was a state secretary in Serbia's ministry of environmental protection. Karić is a member of the Socialist Party of Serbia (SPS) parliamentary group.
Early life and career Karić was born in the Belgrade municipality of Obrenovac, in what was then the Socialist Republic of Serbia in the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. He holds an engineering degree from the geology department of the University of Belgrade Faculty of Mining and Geology, was president of the Young Researchers of Serbia from 2001 to 2005, and was deputy director of Obrenovac's Environmental Protection Fund from 2004 to 2008. Karić worked for the public water utility Beogrаdvode from 2008 to 2012, serving as advisor to the general director and head of flood defence for the City of Belgrade.Иван Карић, , Ministry of Environmental Protection, accessed 26 January 2025.
Politician Early years (2008–12) Karić led an electoral list called Green Obrenovac in the 2008 Serbian local elections, running for election to the Obrenovac municipal assembly.Službeni List (Grada Beograda), Volume 52 Number 13 (30 April 2008), p. 45. The list narrowly missed crossing the electoral threshold for assembly representation.Službeni List (Grada Beograda), Volume 48 Number 18 (22 May 2008), p. 5.
Greens of Serbia was founded in 2007 but was largely dormant until 2010, when all parties in Serbia were required to re-register. The party became a gathering point for other green parties and non-governmental organizations during the re-registration process and emerged as a much more cohesive organization. Karić became the party leader in this period. In a June 2010 interview with Vreme, he situated the party in the modern European green tradition, saying, "just as we need alternative energy sources, we also need new energy in politics."Slobodan Bubnjević, "Lepe želje i ekološka stvarnost", Vreme, 16 June 2010, accessed 26 January 2025.
Parliamentarian (2012–17) Zeleni signed a cooperation accord with Boris Tadić's Democratic Party in April 2012, agreeing to support the DS at all levels of government in Serbia's upcoming elections while working with the DS on various environmental initiatives. Karić said of the agreement, "We want to be a partner of the Democratic Party, which will lead Serbia on its European path.""Sporazum DS-a i stranke Zelenih Srbije", Radio Television of Vojvodina, 24 April 2012, accessed 26 January 2025.
He received the fifty-second position on the DS-led Choice for a Better Life electoral list in the 2012 Serbian parliamentary election and was elected as the party's first assembly representative when the list won sixty-seven seats.Избори за народне посланике Народне скупштине, 6. мај 2012. године – ИЗБОРНЕ ЛИСТЕ (1 ИЗБОР ЗА БОЉИ ЖИВОТ- БОРИС ТАДИЋ), , Republic Election Commission, Republic of Serbia, accessed 7 April 2024. The Let's Get Serbia Moving coalition led by the Serbian Progressive Party (SNS) won the election and afterward formed a coalition government with the Socialist Party of Serbia and other parties. Karić served in opposition with the parliamentary group of the Democratic Party. In his first term, he was a member of the environmental protection committee, a deputy member of the health and family committee, and a member of the parliamentary friendship groups with Austria, Germany, the Netherlands, Slovenia, and the Sovereign Order of Malta.IVAN KARIĆ, , National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia, accessed 26 January 2025.
After entering parliament, Karić urged the Serbian government to create a separate environment ministry, noting that more than sixty per cent of the country's negotiations with the European Union (EU) related to agriculture and ecology.Bojan Cvejić, "'Zeleni' poslanik", Danas, 25 February 2016, accessed 26 January 2025. He urged the Serbian government to extend the country's moratorium on nuclear power in late 2012, after the president of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts said that it would be reviewed in three years' time. Karić was quoted as saying, "Japan has perhaps the most advanced technology [in the world], but even this technology could not stand up to the earthquake and the tsunami. Nuclear power plants in Europe go through rigorous tests and most of them would not withstand a serious earthquake.""Analysts urge "geostrategic balance" if Serbia ends moratorium on nuclear energy," British Broadcasting Corporation Monitoring European, 6 October 2012 (Source: Politika website, Belgrade, in Serbian 4 Oct 12). He later said that Serbia should postpone its talks to join the World Trade Organization (WTO) rather than succumbing to pressure from that organization to overturn a ban on genetically modified foods."Serbian Greens say parliament unanimously opposed to GM food," British Broadcasting Corporation Monitoring European, 30 January 2013 (Source: Vecernje novosti website, Belgrade, in Serbian 27 Jan 13).
The Democratic Party split in early 2014, with Tadić leading a breakaway group originally called the New Democratic Party (NDS). As there was no time for the NDS to be registered prior to the 2014 parliamentary election, Tadić worked out an agreement for his party to join the Greens of Serbia collectively, with the party being renamed as "New Democratic Party–Greens." Karić remained the nominal president of the party, although it was generally accepted that Tadić was its real leader."Tadić se "pripojio" Zelenima Srbije, Karić predsednik stranke", 021.rs, 22 February 2014, accessed 26 January 2025. The restructured NDS–Zeleni party contested the 2014 election at the head of a broader coalition around Tadić's leadership. Karić received the thirteenth position on the coalition's list and was re-elected when list won eighteen mandates.Избори за народне посланике Народне скупштине одржани 16. и 23. марта 2014. године – ИЗБОРНЕ ЛИСТЕ (11 БОРИС ТАДИЋ - Нова демократска странка - Зелени, ЛСВ - Ненад Чанак, Заједно за Србију, VMDK, Заједно за Војводину, Демократска левица Рома), , Republic Election Commission, Republic of Serbia, accessed 3 April 2024. The NDS–Zeleni alliance was always intended as a short-term arrangement, and the parties separated again after the election (although there was initially some controversy as to how this would occur).B. Cvejić and S. Čongradin, "Težak razvod NDS i Zelenih", Danas, 8 April 2014, accessed 26 January 2025."Zeleni samostalno, NDS se registruje", B92, 15 June 2014, accessed 26 January 2025.
The SNS won a majority victory in 2014 and afterward formed a new coalition government with the Socialists and other parties. Zeleni remained in opposition. Karić served in a parliamentary group with Tadić's party, which was renamed in late 2014 as the Social Democratic Party (SDS). In this term, he was deputy chair of the environmental protection committee, a member of the economy committee, a deputy member of the agriculture committee, the president of Serbia's parliamentary friendship group with Norway, and a member of the friendship groups with Austria, Germany, and the Netherlands.IVAN KARIĆ, , National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia, accessed 26 January 2025. He welcomed the victory of Syriza in the January 2015 Greek parliamentary election, saying that the victory was important for the Balkans and for Europe.Bojan Cvejić, "'Zeleni' poslanik", Danas, 25 February 2016, accessed 26 January 2025.
In February 2016, Karić left the Social Democratic Party caucus to join that of the Socialist Party of Serbia. In announcing his decision, he said that Zeleni's "common value determinant" with the SPS was "the idea of social democracy and sustainable development.""Ivan Karić u poslaničkom klubu SPS", Blic (Source: Beta), 28 February 2016, accessed 27 August 2017. Zeleni contested the 2016 Serbian parliamentary election as part of the SPS's list; Karić appeared in the ninth position and was re-elected when the list won twenty-nine seats.Избори за народне посланике 2016. године – Изборне листе (3 ИВИЦА ДАЧИЋ – „Социјалистичка партија Србије (СПС), Јединствена Србија (ЈС) – Драган Марковић Палма“), , Republic Election Commission, Republic of Serbia, accessed 27 October 2021. The Progressives won another majority government and again formed a coalition with the Socialists, and Karić served as a government supporter. In his third term, he was a member of the environmental protection committee, a deputy member of the spatial planning committee and the European integration committee, a deputy member of Serbia's delegation to the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE PA), once again the leader of its friendship group with Norway, and a member of the friendship groups with Australia, Austria, Canada, China, Denmark, Germany, Greece, Iran, the Netherlands, and South Africa.IVAN KARIC, , National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia, accessed 26 January 2025.
There were rumours that Karić would contest the 2017 Serbian presidential election,Ivan Karić kandidat za 'zelenog' predsednika republike, Danas, 7 September 2016, accessed 26 January 2025. though ultimately this did not happen.
State secretary (2017–22) Serbia created a new ministry of environmental protection in June 2017. On 6 October of the same year, Karić was named as a state secretary in the ministry.Ministarstvo zaštite životne sredine dobilo dva nova državna sekretara "Ministarstvo zaštite životne sredine dobilo dva nova državna sekretara", Energetski Portal, 11 October 2017, accessed 16 October 2017. He was required to resign from parliament by virtue of accepting this position, and his resignation took effect on 9 October.3 June 2016 legislature, National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia, accessed 26 January 2025.
Karić's primary responsibility as state secretary was overseeing negotiations over Serbia's compliance with Chapter 27 (environment and climate change) in its accession process with the European Union. He outlined his priorities in a detailed article published in CorD magazine in March 2018; among other things, he wrote that Serbia would need to "pay particular attention to its environmental preventive activities and the 'polluter pays' principle" going forward.Ivan Karić, "Large But Cost – Effective Investment", CorD, 29 March 2018, accessed 26 January 2025. In a follow-up article in June 2019, he said that Chapter 27 was the most technically complicated and expensive chapter in Serbia's EU negotiations, with over two hundred regulations that needed to be implemented.Ivan Karić, "Chapter 27 – The Most Technically Complicated", CorD, 1 June 2019, accessed 26 January 2025. Serbia ultimately submitted its negotiating position in January 2020.Nataša Nešić, "Ivan Karić, State Secretary at the Ministry of Environmental Protection: Environmental protection will become a priority in the coming years", Diplomacy & Commerce, 14 April 2021, accessed 26 January 2025.
In November 2018, Karić said that his department had drafted a new law to ban the construction of small hydro power plants in protected areas.Maja Zuvela, "Serbia plans to halt dam boom in protected areas", Reuters, 27 November 2018, accessed 26 January 2025.