The Manoeuvring Structure of the National Defence was formed in 1990, in response to the then-threats of violent intervention by the Yugoslav People’s Army (referred to as YPA) during the independence process, as the commanding forces of the Territorial Defence of the Socialist Republic of Slovenia (Teritorialna obramba Socialistične Republike Slovenije – referred to as the TO SRS) and the vast majority of their active officers just blindly followed orders from Belgrade, which was also evident from the executed order on the disarmament of the TO SRS. As an organised response to the
(self)disarmament of the TO SRS and thus the clearly expressed intention of the federal authorities to prevent Slovenia’s independence with the use of military force, preparations for armed resistance were initiated in May 1990, which then helped protect the independence process. In October 1990, the Manoeuvring Structure of the National Defence (Manevrska struktura narodne zaščite – hereinafter referred to as MSNZ) was renamed to the Territorial Defence of the Republic of Slovenia (Teritorialna obramba Republike Slovenije – Slovenska Vojska, referred to as the TO RS – SV), but in fact, this has systematically, until today, been the mission of a single organisation – the Slovenian Army.
In a letter written on the occasion of the 31st anniversary of the beginnings of the Slovenian Armed Forces, the head of the Manoeuvring Structure of the National Defence of the Republic of Slovenia from the year 1990 and the first commander of the Slovenian Armed Forces, Brigadier general Tone Krkovič, wrote a letter emphasising the importance of the then-establishment of MSNZ. As he points out, the people who fought for the independence of the Slovenian nation were given a theoretical basis in 1987, in the national programme published in the 57th issue of Nova Revija (New Magazine), and after the victory of DEMOS in the first free elections in 1990, they were faced with the following questions: “How can we protect the independence process and in what way can we prevent the possible violent interference of the federal structures, especially the Yugoslav People’s Army, in the practical implementation of national sovereignty?”
The Territorial Defence of the Socialist Republic of Slovenia (TO SRS) was systemically part of the unified armed forces of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia. “The vast majority of active officers in the higher command structures of the TO SRS blindly followed orders from Belgrade – despite the fact that they were Slovenians by nationality,” he explained. The culmination of such blind obedience was the consistent execution of the order for the disarmament of the TO SRS, which was issued as a direct result of DEMOS’s electoral victory, just before the swearing-in of Slovenia’s first democratically elected government in mid-May 1990. The order was then followed by the covert (self)disarmament of the TO SRS. Krkovič defines this as the successful completion of the first phase of the YPA’s aggression against Slovenia, which was, de facto, also the beginning of the war for Slovenia. In these first days already, some brave and nationally conscious commanders at the municipal levels resisted the order, which was without a doubt an individual act worthy of respect.
As an organised response to the (self)disarmament of the TO SRS and thus the clearly expressed intention of the federal authorities to prevent Slovenia’s independence with the use of military force, preparations for armed resistance were initiated in May 1990. The beginnings of the armed resistance were, at the same time as they were being formed, already performing the role of protecting the independence process. “The initialisation and subsequent formation of the armed organisation happened in a conspiratorial manner, through several stages of formation and under different statuses of legality, according to the legal system in force at the time,” he explained.
MSNZ as the first formation of the Slovenian Army As Krkovič further explains, the beginnings of preparations for organised armament resistance initially happened without a formal title, but later, the title was formed and changed from “resistance cores,” through the “Army of the Republic of Slovenia,” to “Manoeuvring Structure of the National Defence – MSNZ.” MSNZ was tandem led from the level of republican secretaries of defence and internal affairs and was formed with the indispensable help of individuals and groups who otherwise formally operated in the structures of the then-Militia. In October 1990, the MSNZ was renamed the Territorial Defence of the Republic of Slovenia, but in fact, this has systematically, until today, been the mission of a single organisation – the Slovenian Army.
According to Krkovič, MSNZ has no precedent in history. It was formed under special conditions, of the most sensitive time of the Slovenian independence process and at a time of unpredictable unfolding of the global and local political crisis. Based on the situation at the time, the main members of the MSNZ logically assumed a war would happen in Slovenia, which would last for several years, but fortunately, it ended soon.
It played its role perfectly in the War of Independence The end result was the symbiotic organisation of tens of thousands of armed soldiers and police officers, who formed a unified and efficient military organisation committed to national interests. The mission of this unique organisation, led through coordination groups on the basis of leadership and command, was confirmed in practice when, a year later, in the war of independence, it played its role fully and perfectly.
Sara Rančigaj
