ARAB NEWS – Editorial: From a geographical point of view, it is absurd that the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic are British.
They are 8,000 miles from Britain but only 300 miles from the South American coast, far closer to Argentina and Chile. However from a political standpoint, the Falkland archipelago has been a British possession since 1833 and against the odds, in 1982 Margaret Thatcher’s government fought a war to oust Argentinean forces that had invaded the islands.
The argument has been that the inhabitants should have the right to determine their own nationality. And since the majority is British and for years survived on subventions from London, they chose then — and still choose — to remain under UK governance. Even as long ago as 1982 there was a well-grounded belief the islands contained substantial deposits of oil and gas. Despite the chauvinism of the Thatcher government, this may well have been what really motivated London to seize back control.
Now a serious exploration effort is beginning and the Argentineans who, despite their humiliating defeat have never renounced their claim to what the islands they call the Malvinas, are furious. Their assertion of sovereignty was yesterday backed by other Latin American states meeting in Mexico. Venezuela’s President Hugo Chavez even offered Argentina military assistance to invade the islands again. It may indeed be calculated that with the British armed forces now heavily deployed in Afghanistan, this time the islands could be held. The last thing London would want, even if still capable of it, would be to mount another long-distance assault. >>> Editor | Tuesday, February 23, 2010
