Nikolai Patrushev: Putin's Right Hand and the Man Dragan Čović Secretly Meets With

SARAJEVO, (Patria) - The President of HDZ BiH and member of the BiH Presidency Dragan Čović and the Vice President of HDZ Croatia Milijan Vaso Brkić met two months ago in a hotel near Trogir with leading figures of the Russian intelligence service, the portal Žurnal reported two days ago, citing sources from international intelligence circles.

The Russian delegation was led by Nikolai Patrushev, former head of the FSB (Russian intelligence service) and one of the closest associates of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The name of Nikolai Patrushev became well known to the public in the region after the attempted coup in Montenegro on October 16, 2016. At that time, on the night before the parliamentary elections in Montenegro, a raid on the parliament in Podgorica was planned, as well as the arrest and liquidation of former Prime Minister Milo Đukanović.

Montenegrin media, as well as numerous world media, claim that Russia was behind it all. Nikolai Patrushev later arrived unannounced in Belgrade to, according to leading world media, take to Russia the Russian individuals involved in the attempted coup in Montenegro.

He is the man who succeeded Vladimir Putin as head of the Russian intelligence service in 1999 and remained in that position during two of Putin's presidential terms.

He was head of the Federal Security Service for almost nine years, longer than any other head of the FSB, and even the KGB since the time of Yuri Andropov, who headed the Soviet intelligence service for 15 years, from 1967 to 1982.

He resigned after the inauguration of President Dmitry Medvedev (in 2008), and was replaced in that position by Alexander Bortnikov, the current head of the FSB. Since May 2008, Patrushev has been Secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation. In addition, he holds the rank of Army General and the title of Hero of the Russian Federation.

He was born in Leningrad, today's Saint Petersburg, in 1951. His father Platon was a Russian navy officer, and his mother Antonina was a chemist by education, although she worked as a nurse during the Soviet-Finnish War and the Siege of Leningrad.

Nikolai Patrushev graduated from the Faculty of Shipbuilding in Leningrad and the Higher School of the KGB, and today he also holds a doctorate in law. His biography is so rich that it is difficult to list all the positions he has held - he was Minister of Security of the Republic of Karelia, worked in the presidential administration during Yeltsin's time, was Deputy Director of the FSB, head of the Operational Staff for the Counter-Terrorist Operation in the North Caucasus, etc.

He is said to be a man trusted by Vladimir Putin and his close friend, the "alpha and omega" of the Russian security service, a man who "knows all the secrets".

Besides Putin, his close friends also include the Chairman of the Supreme Council of the "United Russia" party and member of the Security Council of the Russian Federation, Boris Gryzlov, with whom Patrushev attended high school.

Some Russian media claim that Patrushev has so many official trips that he has surpassed even the Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in their number.

- Although the alleged coup attempt did not achieve its goal of blocking NATO membership, it successfully worsened the political and identity rift within Montenegrin society - states an analysis by Professor Dimitar Bechev for the Foreign Policy Research Institute (FPRI). This, he claims, gave Russia room for a new strategy of influence in the Balkans.

“The campaign against Montenegro's NATO membership may have ended without success, but Russia is still in the game. Nikolai Patrushev, one of the leading Russian figures in shaping policy in the Balkans, could still 'make amends for Montenegro'. But only if political divisions in Montenegro help him do so,” states the analysis “The 2016 Coup Attempt in Montenegro: Is Russia's Influence in the Balkans Spreading?”.

Patrushev is the former director of the Russian intelligence service, who, according to one of the theories mentioned in the document, is behind the attempted coup in Montenegro. Bechev notes in the analysis that Russia did not rebel when Montenegro officially applied for NATO membership in April 2008, but that local officials "changed their tune" after the outbreak of the Ukrainian crisis. During that period, Montenegro joined the European Union's sanctions against Russia due to the illegal annexation of Crimea.

- As much as it may seem like a farce today, there was a possibility that blood would be spilled on the streets of Podgorica on October 16. The statements and (in)direct evidence may seem (un)serious to us, but the fact remains that, the day after Aleksandar Vučić confirmed part of the story about the conspiracy against Montenegro, Nikolai Patrushev, Secretary of the Russian Security Council, arrived in Belgrade on an unannounced visit to, according to some Belgrade press, "take care of" his officers involved in this operation - states the Podgorica-based newspaper Monitor.

Patrushev during his visit to Serbia with Serbian Police Minister Nebojša Stefanović

The Moscow daily Kommersant also wrote about the relations between Belgrade and Moscow and Patrushev's unannounced visit to Belgrade.

- In the relations between Moscow and Belgrade, an unprecedented scandal in post-Soviet history arose, which was resolved by the visit of the Secretary of the Russian Security Council, Nikolai Patrushev, to Belgrade - wrote Kommersant.
The daily states that the Belgrade newspaper Danas reported that several Russian citizens were deported from Serbia due to participation in the preparation of terrorist actions in Podgorica and that this information was not officially denied by anyone.

Kommersant states that Patrushev was received at the highest level, that all talks were held under strict confidentiality, and that at the beginning of the visit it was officially announced that he had proposed to Serbian officials the signing of a memorandum of understanding in the field of security.

The newspaper states, however, that many local politicians and experts doubted that the discussion about the memorandum was the main goal of Patrushev's visit, given that the memorandum had been considered before and is not binding.

The newspaper notes that Patrushev arrived in Belgrade a day after Serbian Prime Minister Aleksandar Vučić announced a plan for the violent takeover of state institutions in Montenegro, with the help of a foreign factor, and confirmed the previous information from the Special Prosecutor of Montenegro, Milivoje Katnić.

Kommersant adds that after the meeting with Vučić, only a brief statement was issued, "whose main phrase" was that it was noted that the security services of Russia and Serbia are successfully cooperating.

The newspaper writes, citing unnamed sources in Belgrade, that Patrushev's main task was to "resolve the situation and prevent a scandal in Russian-Serbian relations", and judging by the statement, the daily concludes, "the emissary from Moscow seems to have succeeded".

Numerous Western media, after the failed coup in Montenegro, wrote and warned about the increased presence of Russia in BiH, which, after failing to prevent Montenegro's entry into NATO, could make every effort to prevent BiH from entering.

As key people for representing Russian interests in BiH, all relevant Western media mention the President of RS Milorad Dodik and the President of HDZ Dragan Čović. Dodik has never hidden, in fact he has boasted about, his relations with Putin and Russia, while Čović daily emphasizes his commitment to the EU and European values.

However, many warn of the danger from Dragan Čović, behind whom stands official Croatia, where Russia has already achieved enormous influence, primarily through the Agrokor case.

Dragan Čović, as a member of the BiH Presidency, should explain to the domestic public what he was doing at the meeting with Putin's top man for the Balkans in the Trogir hotel.