A Response to All of Vucic’s Dreams by Zeljko Ivanovic

2026-03-11 - 07:29

Good morning! I was thinking yesterday about writing on Mrs Pajkovic, and the long-awaited sexual revolution among Montenegrins, but another topic forced its way in, so we’ll leave OnlyFans for tomorrow. Namely, yesterday, Zeljko Mitrovic – sorry, Ivanovic, once again declared the end of PES, taking a jab at me like in the good old days, condemning my naive faith in Milojko Spajic and giving me a perfect excuse to point out the lack of principles and political wanderings of the esteemed Mrc Ivanovic, and the increasingly frequent overlap between his goals and those of Aleksandar Vucic. Don’t forget to join our Viber community. A Response to All of Vucic’s Dreams by Zeljko Ivanovic First of all, I want to say that Zeljko hasn’t lied. Since Montenegro’s EU accession entered its final stretch, and since Spajic tied himself and PES to that process, I’ve considered PES part of the solution. I explained this in detail in yesterday’s column, but here’s a short summary: elections are next year, and parties are slowly but surely entering campaign mode. DF will increasingly “play the Serbian card,” Democrats will make arrests, DPS will respond to those arrests, and PES remains isolated and the only party fatefully tied to the EU. Not because they’re the most European, but because they have no other topic. This currently makes them the only political option aligned with Montenegro’s most important national interest. Everyone else is narrowly focused on their own partisan interests, which may or may not align with the European path. For PES, the European path is the only choice. Like Zeljko, I think Miso Lakovic’s departure was an own goal for PES, but I don’t think it signals the end for the party. And even if it were, I don’t think anyone should rejoice. Why? Because PES is a party that primarily gathers Serbs and has repeatedly shown courage and readiness to resist Serbian radicalism—and, more importantly, the influence of Aleksandar Vucic—in cases like Vranes, the Pavle Djurisic monument, and others. That should never be forgotten. Unlike Mr Ivanovic, I don’t root for political parties, nor do I participate in creating or bringing them to power. Zeljko participated in consolidating DPS power around the referendum and later created URA, which brought Mandic and Spajic to power. I once saw Milo Djukanovic on an escalator in a hallway, and we courteously nodded to each other—I was with my son, he was with his granddaughter in his arms. That’s all the communication I’ve ever had with that man. Ivanovic knows him much better. I’ve never been a DPS member, though I remember well a video of Ivanovic under DPS party flags. I’ve only watched Spajic on TV, first on Vijesti, who praised him to the skies until they realised they couldn’t control him the way they controlled Dritan, for example. The era when Zeljko dictated public morality, and it made sense, has passed. So, what is Ivanovic’s ultimate goal? Interestingly, his battles and interests often align with Aleksandar Vucic’s goals in Montenegro. First, they worked together to remove Milo and bring Zdravko to power. Then they toppled Zdravko, brought Dritan as PM, and adopted the Fundamental Agreement. Zeljko is the dreamer, though the politicians of his dreams often turn into the demons of his worst nightmares. He once glorified Milo Bozovic, and now complains about Vlada Mandic. Suddenly, he’s worried about Montenegro and became a patriot, whereas a few years ago, when it was useful to court Serbian nationalists, he lectured on the “newly invented” Montenegrin identity. What would happen if Spajic fell? What outcome does Zeljko foresee given the current balance of power? Do his interests align with Vucic’s here as well? I notice he doesn’t make much noise about changes at United Media, while his colleagues at N1, Nova, and Radar in Belgrade are anxious about what tomorrow will bring. Zeljko seems calm and collected. That’s enough for today. We wish you a pleasant rest of the day. Kind regards, Ljubomir Filipovic, CdM analyst and columnist (Columnists’ opinions and views do not necessarily reflect those of CdM’s editorial board)