He served as minister of science and technology in 1992-93 and as deputy foreign minister in two terms -- 1993-95 and 1996-2000.
He also served as the president's chief of staff and secretary-general of the Defence and National Security Council in 1995-96.
He was re-elected as a member of parliament at elections in January 2000.
After his Croatian Democratic Union (HDZ) won parliamentary elections in 2003, he became prime minister and stayed in office after parliamentary elections last year.
He was elected president of the HDZ in April 2000 as well as in 2002, 2004 and 2008.
Sanader achieved a PhD at Innsbruck University in Austria. He is fluent in English, German, French and Italian.