ABSTRACT
The challenges faced by Slovenia and Macedonia have been remarkably similar up to a point, but there have also been some situational differences related in part to Slovenia's better economic position and to Macedonia's diplomatic difficulties vis-a-vis Greece. It was only in 1989 that the question of Slovenia's relation to the Yugoslav federation was first posed, with the drafting of controversial amendments which gave Slovenian authorities more control over the disposition of armed forces within their own republic. As a result of a combination of internal economic pressures, the repercussions of the federal breakup, and ostracism by the West, Slovenia began its independence with an economic nosedive, and by October 1991 its industrial production stood at 17 percent less than the previous October. The Macedonians were not prepared for independence when Slovenia and Croatia seceded, and for a while Macedonian President Kiro Gligorov continued to think in terms of Macedonia remaining in federal union with Serbia and Montenegro.
