<P> After the Allied victory in World War II , Yugoslavia was set up as a federation of six republics , with borders drawn along ethnic and historical lines : Bosnia and Herzegovina , Croatia , Macedonia , Montenegro , Serbia and Slovenia . In addition , two autonomous provinces were established within Serbia : Vojvodina and Kosovo . Each of the republics had its own branch of the League of Communists of Yugoslavia party and a ruling elite , and any tensions were solved on the federal level . The Yugoslav model of state organization , as well as a `` middle way '' between planned and liberal economy , had been a relative success , and the country experienced a period of strong economic growth and relative political stability up to the 1980s , under the rule of president - for - life Josip Broz Tito . After his death in 1980 , the weakened system of federal government was left unable to cope with rising economic and political challenges . </P>
bosnia and herzegovina croatia macedonia and slovenia all used to be parts of
Yugoslavia