The Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes and the Republic of Austria, which developed from the Habsburg Empire at the end of October 1918, should have brought about continued collaboration as a result of the centuries-old political, economic, social and cultural relations of their peoples. However, the fact that this cooperation between 1918 and 1938 was characterized by confrontation rather than cooperation had many reasons: Conflicts over the determination of borders in Southern Carinthia and Southern Styria; conflicts over the confiscation of property; competition in the international policy of alliances; the negative role of the minorities in the Yugoslav-Austrian relations; the question of restoration and »Anschluß«; the peiorative image of the neighbour in the public opinion.