On the 25th of June 1991, both Slovenia and the Republic of Croatia declared themselves indepent from the former Republic of Yugoslavia. This was the result of the struggle maily between Croatia, Slovenia and Serbia, to establish some kind of Yugoslavia under a confederation after Tito's death.
The declaration of independece was regarded by the Federal Executive Council of Yugoslavia as an illigal act and the JNA (Yugoslavian Army) was ordered to take over control in Slovenia. This action was the reason that Croatia decided to call the Croatian Army to arms. Feeling threathened, Croatia prepared to defend itsself. The events that followed are history, for the following 4 ½ years the stage is set for violence in Yugoslavia ( Goldstein, 1999, pp226-228).
But what exactly happened here? Why had it suddely become impossible to live toghether in one nation state for people who had done so for over forty years under Tito's regime? How could neighbours start killing eachother? Different writers have adressed the problem of the solution of the violence in Yugoslavia. In short, Huntington suggests in his article The clash of Civilizations that the solution is found in greater cooperation and unit of the West, since conflicts like these will happen more often. A conflict like his suggests that after the widering away of the nation state, other, older lines of division become of importancte again ( Huntington, 1993, pp 30, 48 ).
On the other hand, Ignatieff argues that the answer to this bloody quetsion is found in the way the national identity of an indivivual is percieved, influence by his personal experience but also manipulated by the authorities. Suddenly, the smallest difference can then become enough to shoot someone (Ignatieff,1999, pp 37-38). .
Last topic to be adressed is the future of Croatia in International Relations, or more specific, the possibility of Croatian accesion to the EU, together with the other nations of which the Republic of Yugoslavia used to consist.