Nikola Špirić
Nikola Špirić is a Bosnian Serb politician who was the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of Bosnia and Herzegovina from 11 January 2007 until 12 January 2012.
He completed elementary education in Drvar, high school in Sarajevo, and his undergraduate and postgraduate education at the University of Sarajevo. He holds a Ph.D. in economics. His doctoral thesis was in monetary and public finance.
Špirić has been an economics professor at the University of Banja Luka since 1992. He held a number of governmental positions including a 4-year term as a representative at the Parliamentary Assembly of Bosnia and Herzegovina. He was Chairman of the House of Peoples in 2002–2003 and Chairman of the House of Representatives in 2003–2004 and 2005–2006.
On 1 November 2007 Špirić tendered his resignation in protest of parliamentary reforms imposed by High Representative Miroslav Lajčák. Špirić felt that the reforms would reduce the influence of Bosnia's Serb population. The resignation was deemed by some to be the country's most serious crisis since the end of the Bosnian War. After the crisis was resolved, he was renominated for the Chairman's post on 10 December 2007, confirmed by the presidency on 27 December 2007 and by parliament on 28 December 2007.
