THE GUARDIAN: Cristina Fernández de Kirchner marks 30th anniversary of end of Falklands war by attempting to reopen sovereignty talksArgentina's president is pressing her country's claim to the Falkland Islands with a high-profile appearance before a little-known United Nations committee on the 30th anniversary of the end of the war.
Cristina Fernández de Kirchner's attendance on Thursday at the annual meeting of the UN decolonisation committee is the first by a head of state, and she [is] bringing dozens of supporters with her. By contrast, the Falkland Islands will be represented by two members of the legislative assembly, accompanied by six young islanders.
Argentina claims Britain has illegally occupied the islands they call the Islas Malvinas since 1833. Britain disputes Argentina's claim to the islands and says Argentina ignores the wishes of the island's 3,000 residents who have expressed a desire to remain British. Argentina maintains that the residents do not have the unilateral right to decide what they want the islands to be.
The clash over the islands flared into war in 1982 when Argentina's then-military dictatorship invaded.
Fernandez asked the 24-member decolonisation committee to schedule the annual discussion of the Falkland Islands' status on Thursday's anniversary of Britain's victory that ended the 74-day conflict. » | Associated Press | Thursday, June 14, 2012
