Markac's attorney Goran Mikulicic said the trial chamber pointed out eight counts in which the indictment had to be amended, including the part referring to the "criminal enterprise," which is the backbone of the indictment.
The UN court accused the two generals of war crimes committed during and after 1995's Operation Storm as part of the "joint criminal enterprise the common purpose of which was the forcible and permanent removal of the Serb population from the Krajina region".
The prosecutor was requested to name all the members of the alleged criminal enterprise and to clarify the roles and tasks of Cermak and Markac in the alleged criminal plan, said Mikulicic.
Cermak's attorney Cedo Prodanovic said the prosecutor's office was asked to make the indictment specific as to the responsibilities of the accused and their relationship, notably in connection with the criminal enterprise.
The prosecutor's office was also requested to provide descriptions of units subordinate to the two generals in connection with their command responsibility, to correct a number of imprecise allegations referring to the armed forces and the qualification of command responsibility.
"The most important thing is that we've succeeded in the part alleging the existence of a criminal plan and enterprise, on which the whole indictment is based," said Mikulicic.
The objections to the indictment were sent in July 2004, disputing the very existence of a criminal plan and enterprise, but the trial chamber left this issue for the main hearing, he said.
According to the attorneys, the more favourable position they might win for their clients will reflect on fugitive General Ante Gotovina, given that his indictment is virtually the same.
Gotovina's defence will be able to refer to a precedent once the general appears in The Hague. Prodanovic said there existed a legal principle under which everything that was favourable for one defendant was favourable for all, and that if it was established that there had been no criminal enterprise in the Markac-Cermak case, there would not be any in the Gotovina case either.
Asked if he thought the criminal enterprise allegation would be dropped, Prodanovic said he doubted it, but added the prosecutor's office would have to try hard and that some parts might be dismissed.
The indictment against Markac and Cermak was unsealed on 8 March 2004. Three days later the two generals surrendered to the Hague tribunal. At their initial appearance before the court they pleaded not guilty and on December 3 were released pending trial.