30 years since Falklands War

[Mr Blob]

I was a teenager at school in 1982 when Argentina landed troops in Port Stanley and raised their national flag there. And Maggie Thatcher assembled a Task Force flotilla of ships to sail south and successfully recapture the barren islands with 1800 British citizens living on. It was a fond war for many Brits at home with national pride at stake, memories of colonial days when this country fought to protect the empire and the first modern missile war. Next year will be the 30th anniversary of the conflict over the disputed territory and Argentina still wants the 'Malvinas'

Do you have strong memories of the Falklands war and should the UK still keep the territory?

 

[dessiato]

I watched this with a great deal of interest. I had already been in the Army, and was considering whether to re-enlist. I think it was the last time Britain went to war on, arguably, justifiable grounds. Nothing since then has been other than political attempts to justify inappropriate xenophobia.

 

[DownwardDog]

first modern missile war.

There were plenty of AAMs and ASMs used in Vietnam.

I can remember making a big chart with the FAA and ARA ORBAT and gleefully crossing out Mirages and Scooters as they got splashed.

 

[Mr Blob]

Geographically the island belongs to Argentina. Someone from Mars who comes to learn about our world politics will be amazed how Britain owns a patch of land so remote to home but close to Argentina. Economically the British see potential in possible oil reserves. The fact that Galtieri invaded and seized the islands by force means Gordon Brown and Cameroon did the right thing by refusing approaches by the Argentinian government to talk about sovereignty. But in 2011, when the Victorian European expansionism days are well over I don't think the UK should cling onto the Falklands. Had the Argies not resorted to the gun in 1982 I am pretty sure the British government would have given up or seriously talk about letting go of the Falklands

 

[Fuchs66]

I remember being worried about my cousin who was there and ended up being wounded

 

[Mr Blob]

There were plenty of AAMs and ASMs used in Vietnam.

it was first time the Exocet was used to such devastating effect- remember Sheffield and Atlantic Conveyor

I watched this with a great deal of interest. I had already been in the Army, and was considering whether to re-enlist

The Task Force was assembled so quickly in Portsmouth and Southampton that soldiers were instructed by signs at public train stations to report for duty- remember TV reports. There was a lot of national sentiment stirred up by the Argentinian action, public excitement and our country was united to sail south. Unlike Afghanistan where many feel its a pointless war the Falklands War had so much public support. It was a short conflict and perceived as a decisive victory

 

[Hocus Eye.]

I was a teenager at school in 1982 when Argentina landed troops in Port Stanley and raised their national flag there. And Maggie Thatcher assembled a Task Force flotilla of ships to sail south and successfully recapture the barren islands with 1800 British citizens living on. It was a fond war for many Brits at home with national pride at stake, memories of colonial days when this country fought to protect the empire and the first modern missile war. Next year will be the 30th anniversary of the conflict over the disputed territory and Argentina still wants the 'Malvinas'

Do you have strong memories of the Falklands war and should the UK still keep the territory?

I remember the Falklands war, and also the build-up to it. I don't know about there being any such thing as a 'fond war' and national pride has to be a very bad reason for killing people. After 30 years perhaps we should look at the causes of the war and make judgements about its validity with hindsight. I hated all the jingoistic nonsense that was put out by the Sun newspaper and the creation of an attempt to re-live the Second World War. We had been in the process of negotiating to hand over the islands with a protection deal for the occupants, before the Argentinians attacked it.

My understanding is that Galtieri attacked the islands in order to create something of a distraction from his own unpopularity. In this calculation he was right and he became popular for a while. He thought he had the support of America who saw his right wing rule as a bulwark against communism. He probably thought that the UK would just move out and accept the situation. Unfortunately for Galtieri Thatcher was also unpopular at the time and she saw the restoration of the islands as a patriotic cause that would enable her to emulate her hero Churchill and become popular. So the scene was set. America did not support our invasion and stayed away much to the disappointment of Thatcher.

Now we have spent as many £millions to make everyone of the islanders into a millionaire, just in building an airstrip - it might have been easier to give them the money and free transport to the UK. We have invested in the military base to keep it supported. Perhaps it might be worth selling the whole thing to the Argentinians if they want to buy it.

And no it was not about oil, that is conspiracy theory.

 

[DownwardDog]

it was first time the Exocet was used to such devastating effect- remember Sheffield and Atlantic Conveyor

The Exocet was used by the Iraqis (admittedly with more haphazard results) in the Iran-Iraq war the year before the Falklands.

 

[Hocus Eye.]

While checking out information on the Exocet missile I found a reference to a Sunday Times article http://www.margaretthatcher.org/document/110663 which claims that Thatcher was so shocked and concerned about the effectiveness of the missile that she persuaded President Mitterrand of France to give her the radar code of the Exocet so that our forces could counter them. As persuasion she told him that if he didn't get the information she would use a nuclear weapon from one of our submarines, on Argentina. I hope she was bluffing.

 

[Casually Red]

I remember being worried about my cousin who was there and ended up being wounded

yeah , me too . Thankfully Ignatio was alright though .

 

[Casually Red]

I can remember it was barely on a few weeks and the popular Irish ballad group " The Wolfe Tones" went to the very top of the Irish charts with a hastily penned tribute to the Irish founder of the Argentinian navy and an open declaration of support for Argentinas claim to Las Malvinas . Think it got to number 2 . Twas all viewed a little different over here .

 

[Casually Red]

America did not support our invasion and stayed away much to the disappointment of Thatcher.
.

wrong Im afraid . Although outwardly the US initially took an officially neutral stance, behind the scenes they were helping out substantially , not only with equipment but intelligence and in diplomacy . They vetoed any call for a ceasefire at the UN and ensured the likes of Pinochet helped out in Thatchers war effort . The task force itself was supplied directly by them . US diplomats were also threatening the Argentines on Britians behalf . Reagan openly announced his support for Thatcher after the Argentines refused to buckle and put sanctions in place , while supplying the British directly with hardware , most particularly Sidewinder missiles , without which Thatcher claimed Britian would have probably lost . British special forces were also issued with Stingers , which largely nullified the ability of Arentine special forces to be effectively inserted by helicopter to stave off British ground advances At one stage the yanks were even offering Britian an aircraft carrier , fearing the argentine exocets were going to knock out the Biritsh carrier capability .

After it was over both Reagan and Caper Weinberger were awarded KBEs for their role in the British war effort .

 

[Maurice Picarda]

Although I'm in favour as hanging on to the Falklands for as long as the mad fucks who live there regard themselves as British, and as long as there is the faintest possibility of exploiting drilling rights, Willy Mountbatten's current posting means that an Argentinian invasion would, at least, have a silver lining. Assuming that he was captured and shot.

 

[Casually Red]

Cuba offered Argentina ground troops to help repel the invasion of Las Malvinas . That would have been a very interesting development .

 

[Belushi]

Don't have much time for Britain on this subject, or the whining of the white settler state of Argentina.

 

[Casually Red]

I support the Argentine claim ,regardless of their skin pigmentation .

 

[dessiato]

Don't have much time for Britain on this subject, or the whining of the white settler state of Argentina.

I support the Argentine claim ,regardless of their skin pigmentation .

Why? Genuine question by the way.

 

[Casually Red]

I always have done . As far as im concerned the British claim to a territory on the other side of the earth is plain and simple colonialism . Latin America has suffered dreadfully from the colonial disease and still does , and the sooner they break all such chains and dispose of all such notions the better . Having a colonial presence in your backyard is rarely a good thing for any developing country . Its an anachrnism in this day and age and the notion of a former empire still having outposts accross the globe just appalls me .

 

[dessiato]

I always have done . As far as im concerned the British claim to a territory on the other side of the earth is plain and simple colonialism . Latin America has suffered dreadfully from the colonial disease and still does , and the sooner they break all such chains and dispose of all such notions the better . Having a colonial presence in your backyard is rarely a good thing for any developing country . Its an anachrnism in this day and age and the notion of a former empire still having outposts accross the globe just appalls me .

I can understand that. While the Falklanders want to stay British I would support them against the Argentinians though.

 

[London_Calling]

Let's be a litle realpolitic about it: It was about the dictator/s building popularity within Argentina then, and it's about oil now - everything else is guff, penguins and dressing.

 

[Hocus Eye.]

wrong Im afraid . Although outwardly the US initially took an officially neutral stance, behind the scenes they were helping out substantially , not only with equipment but intelligence and in diplomacy . They vetoed any call for a ceasefire at the UN and ensured the likes of Pinochet helped out in Thatchers war effort . The task force itself was supplied directly by them . US diplomats were also threatening the Argentines on Britians behalf . Reagan openly announced his support for Thatcher after the Argentines refused to buckle and put sanctions in place , while supplying the British directly with hardware , most particularly Sidewinder missiles , without which Thatcher claimed Britian would have probably lost . British special forces were also issued with Stingers , which largely nullified the ability of Arentine special forces to be effectively inserted by helicopter to stave off British ground advances At one stage the yanks were even offering Britian an aircraft carrier , fearing the argentine exocets were going to knock out the Biritsh carrier capability .

After it was over both Reagan and Caper Weinberger were awarded KBEs for their role in the British war effort .

That is most interesting. I have now checked up on the role of Pinochet's Chile in this war and it seems that there was a lot of support in the form of radar information and also weapons. In response Thatcher supplied Chile with secondhand aircraft. Argentina and Chile had their own dispute as well, keeping some key Argentine forces out of the Falklands theatre. For years afterwards Thatcher was very pally with Pinochet.

 

[Deareg]

I always have done . As far as im concerned the British claim to a territory on the other side of the earth is plain and simple colonialism . Latin America has suffered dreadfully from the colonial disease and still does , and the sooner they break all such chains and dispose of all such notions the better . Having a colonial presence in your backyard is rarely a good thing for any developing country . Its an anachrnism in this day and age and the notion of a former empire still having outposts accross the globe just appalls me .

They haven't suffered nearly as much as the indigenous peoples that they stole the land from.

 

[Meltingpot]

Whatever the strength of the claim a democratic Argentina has over the islands now; what do those who opposed the war in 1982, actually think we should have done when a group of islands over which we had sovereignty was invaded by a fascist dictatorship which tortured and killed its political opponents? Leave them to it?

Even Michael Foot (no right winger) supported the war at the time.

 

[dessiato]

Whatever the strength of the claim a democratic Argentina has over the islands now; what do those who opposed the war in 1982, actually think we should have done when a group of islands over which we had sovereignty was invaded by a fascist dictatorship which tortured and killed its political opponents? Leave them to it?

Even Michael Foot (no right winger) supported the war at the time.

This is why I supported it then, and continue do so now. I would find it far harder to support the war if it happened now.

 

[Casually Red]

I can understand that. While the Falklanders want to stay British I would support them against the Argentinians though.

I wouldnt.

 

[Deareg]

Whatever the strength of the claim a democratic Argentina has over the islands now; what do those who opposed the war in 1982, actually think we should have done when a group of islands over which we had sovereignty was invaded by a fascist dictatorship which tortured and killed its political opponents? Leave them to it?

Even Michael Foot (no right winger) supported the war at the time.

Aided by another fascist dictatorship that tortured and killed it's political opponents?

 

[dessiato]

Aided by another fascist dictatorship that tortured and killed it's political opponents?

Typical Thatcher hypocrysy

 

[Casually Red]

Whatever the strength of the claim a democratic Argentina has over the islands now; what do those who opposed the war in 1982, actually think we should have done when a group of islands over which we had sovereignty was invaded by a fascist dictatorship which tortured and killed its political opponents? Leave them to it?

I think its a bit rich to be saying it was righteous because Argentina was ruled by a junta when General Pinochet was your key ally in the region during that conflict . You were supplying him with all sorts of hardware , such as jets , warships , electronic equipment in return for his facist regimes assistance.
Pinochets fascist regimes radar intelligence was key to the task forces survival . British reconassiance aircraft were also based directly on Chilean territory . The Task force was itself refuelled by Pinochets fascist military . Thatcher herself stated

When Argentine forces occupied the Falklands in 1982, I instructed my government to provide, within the context of our neutrality , whatever assistance we could to our freind and ally . I considered this a matter of Chiles national honour.

http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=PSsxmXWChqIC&lpg=PP1&pg=PA397#v=onepage&q&f=false
Interesting reading from page 390 onwards.

 

[Casually Red]

Even Michael Foot (no right winger) supported the war at the time.

he supported it because he was a British politician , regardless of his particular stripe . Fidel Castro supported the argentine claim , and even offered to send ground troops to fight the British . The principle of anti colonialism and regional solidarity against it was of far greater importance. The vast majority of Latin Americas leftists supported , and still do , the argentine claim regardless of whos in power .

 

[Meltingpot]

I think its a bit rich to be saying it was righteous because Argentina was ruled by a junta when General Pinochet was your key ally in the region during that conflict . You were supplying him with all sorts of hardware , such as jets , warships , electronic equipment in return for his facist regimes assistance.
Pinochets fascist regimes radar intelligence was key to the task forces survival . British reconassiance aircraft were also based directly on Chilean territory . The Task force was itself refuelled by Pinochets fascist military . Thatcher herself stated

When Argentine forces occupied the Falklands in 1982, I instructed my government to provide, within the context of our neutrality , whatever assistance we could to our freind and ally . I considered this a matter of Chiles national honour.

http://books.google.co.uk/books?id=PSsxmXWChqIC&lpg=PP1&pg=PA397#v=onepage&q&f=false
Interesting reading from page 390 onwards.

That's a fair point, so what then is your answer? What should we have done in 1982?