[1] In 1990-1991, contradictions between Serbia and other republics within the federal Yugoslavia (Slovenia and Croatia), economic, political and then ethno-territorial conflicts began to grow.
[10] In early 1991, the European Community, anticipating an imminent armed conflict in Yugoslavia, offered its mediation assistance to the SFRY leadership.
After the SFRY allied government agreed to the mediation of the European Community, the latter conducted a series of negotiations and consultations with the warring parties.
On July 7, 1991, the Brioni Agreement was signed, ending the war in Slovenia, from whose territory all Yugoslav army units were withdrawn.
The agreement provided for a moratorium on the entry into force of the declarations of independence of Slovenia and Croatia for a period of three months, as well as the need to begin negotiations on the future structure of Yugoslavia.
[1] On 20 November 1991 Lord Carrington asked: "Does the Serbian population in Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina, as one of the constituent peoples of Yugoslavia, have the right to self-determination?"
The Commission ruled that Croatia's independence should not yet be recognized because the new Croatian Constitution did not incorporate the protections for minorities required by European Community.
The Commission rejected Serbian and Montenegrin objections to its competence to respond to three references that it had received from Lord Carrington, which resulted in Opinions 8, 9 and 10.
It ruled that it should be resolved by mutual agreement between the several successor states, with an equitable division of the international assets and obligations of the former SFRY.
[18] Peter Radan, an Australian legal academic of Serbian descent, has criticised the Badinter Commission's interpretation of the SFRY Constitution.
Based upon the above analysis of the reasoning of the Badinter Commission in Opinion No 3 Radan concludes that neither the international law principles of respect for the territorial status quo and uti possidetis nor the provisions of article 5 of the Constitution of the SFRY 1974 provides any justification for the Badinter Borders Principle" and that in redrawing the new borders between independent states "it may even be necessary to facilitate orderly and voluntary transfers of parts of the population.