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The precursor to the National Assembly passed constitutional amendments on 7 March 1990 which removed the word "socialist" from the name of the country.

The amendments set forth that the name Republic Slovenia be used throughout the text of the Constitution of the Socialist Republic of Slovenia.

Along with the amendments, the then assembly also passed a decision that Slovenian nationals serve military service in Slovenia, rather than in other parts of the then Yugoslavia.

Several constitutional amendments followed in late September 1990, which among other things stipulated that federal provisions that disagree with the Slovenian Constitution be not effective in Slovenia.

Another change was that military service, conscription and territorial defence are regulated by law adopted by the then Slovenian legislative assembly.

The DEMOS coalition of democratic parties in March 1990 presented an initiative for the establishment of Slovenian Armed Forces.

Under the decision that Slovenian citizens serve military service in Slovenia, the then Slovenian government was to demand of the federal defence minister to relocate Slovenians serving outside the republic to units in Slovenia.

A burning issue at the time was how to protect conscripts who would not leave to serve in other parts of the federation and how to get those serving safely home, especially after the later conflict.

The events at the time were important in the formation of Territorial Defence, which in 1993 transformed into the Slovenian Armed Forces, as well as in the independence process.

Slovenia declared independence on 25 June 1991, based on a referendum on 23 December 1990 in which an overwhelming majority voted for breaking away from the former Yugoslavia.