BUENOS AIRES — Thirty years after Argentina’s failed invasion of the Falkland Islands, President Cristina Fernandez is ratcheting up pressure by trying to isolate the archipelago’s English-speaking inhabitants while heaping scorn on a British government that has refused to relinquish control.Read the rest here.
Argentina’s efforts, calculated to force Prime Minister David Cameron’s government into sovereignty negotiations, come at a poignant moment for Argentina: the anniversary of the land-and-sea assault launched against the islands on April 2, 1982, by a waning dictatorship. Though lasting just 74 days, the war had all the hallmarks of a fierce conventional conflict, complete with sunken warships, the firing of Exocet missiles, artillery bombardments, amphibious landings, aerial dogfights and more than 900 deaths.
Argentina, now ruled by a democratic government, condemns the military junta that made the decision to invade in a last-gasp effort to save its crumbling hold on power. But Fernandez says her country is still in the right to claim the islands — 300 miles off Argentina’s coast — which Argentine invaders were unable to hold from a fleet of more than 100 ships deployed by Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.
In recent weeks, Argentina has embarked on a multi-pronged effort that has included stopping British vessels from docking and winning support from neighboring countries to restrict port access to ships flying the Falkland Islands flag. The Argentine industry minister called on companies to reduce British imports, and the president has accused Cameron of “near stupidity” for refusing to negotiate.
Argentina's claim to the Falkland Islands is as weighty as that of the United States to Canada.
No comments:
Post a Comment