Contact
Email:
Mirko.Savkovic@campus.lmu.de
Contact
Historisches Seminar
Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München
Schellingstr. 12
80799 München
Germany
Email: Mirko.Savkovic@campus.lmu.de
Twitter: @MirkoSavkovic
Doctoral Project
Role of Yugoslavia in the Liberation Struggle of Zimbabwe
This doctoral project explores Yugoslavia’s political, diplomatic, and societal support for Zimbabwean liberation movements during the Cold War. It focuses on the period after Southern Rhodesia’s Unilateral Declaration of Independence in 1965 and the rise of armed liberation groups like ZAPU and ZANU, framing Yugoslavia’s role within the contexts of socialist internationalism, the Non-Aligned Movement, and decolonization worldwide.
The study identifies the Yugoslav actors involved, including state institutions, political parties, social organizations, and individuals, as well as their motivations, constraints, and solidarity efforts. It also assesses how these interactions affected the liberation movement and Yugoslavia’s diplomatic and political relations with Zimbabwe and other Southern African countries during the liberation struggle and in the post-independence period.
Using multi-archival research and a transnational approach, the project aims to contribute to current historiographical debates concerning the influence of the Cold War between Southeast Europe and the Global South.
Curriculum Vitae
Mirko Savković completed his undergraduate degree in Political Science and International Relations at Çankaya University in Ankara. He also holds a degree in Security, Intelligence, and Strategic Studies, earned through Erasmus Mundus joint degree programs at the University of Glasgow, Dublin City University, and Charles University in Prague. Additionally, he participated in an Erasmus exchange at Nicolaus Copernicus University in Toruń.
During and prior to his doctoral studies, he gained professional and academic experience in European and international institutions. His roles include working at the European University Institute in Florence (Budget and Financial Affairs Service), the European Union Agency for the Space Programme (EUSPA) in Prague (Market Development & Innovation Department), the Peace Research Institute Frankfurt, mentoring students at CEU’s Invisible University for Ukraine, and coordinating projects at the European Danube Academy (Ulm), supporting transnational cultural and educational initiatives across the region.
He is actively involved in cultural, academic, and civil society projects in Southeast Europe, focusing on minority rights, memory politics, and rural community development, notably through Zeleno mače (The Green Kitten), a group he co-founded in 2020.
Awards & Recognitions
Bavarian Government Scholarship
Erasmus Mundus Scholarship
Sir Richard May Balkan Programme Scholarship (CCSDD)
Turkish Government Scholarship
Elected Student Representative at the Graduate School for East and Southeast European Studies LMU
Publications
Selected publications, reviews, and ongoing research outputs are available via ORCID at: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3720-896X.
I welcome inquiries regarding potential project collaborations, professional opportunities, or scholarly discussions and am happy to be contacted at Mirko.Savkovic@campus.lmu.de