Falklands War: Countdown & Conflict 1982
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
Falklands War: Countdown & Conflict 1982 by Roger Lorton 1 Roger Lorton has asserted his rights under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 to be identified as the author of this book. Other works by the author: A-Z of Policing Law 2nd Ed. 2001 ISBN-10: 0117028126 / ISBN-13: 978-0117028128 A-Z of Countryside Law 2nd Ed. 2000 ISBN-10: 0117023833 / ISBN-13: 978-0117023833 A-Z of Neighbourhood 2001 Law ISBN-10: 0117026212 / ISBN-13: 9780117026216 Internet books: The Falkland Islands: History Falklands War: The First 400 Years Website: http://falklandstimeline.wordpress.com/ 2 "The Purposes of the United Nations are: 1. To maintain international peace and security, and to that end: to take effective collective measures for the prevention and removal of threats to the peace, and for the suppression of acts of aggression or other breaches of the peace, and to bring about by peaceful means, and in conformity with the principles of justice and international law, adjustment or settlement of international disputes or situations which might lead to a breach of the peace; 2. To develop friendly relations among nations based on respect for the principle of equal rights and self-determination of peoples, and to take other appropriate measures to strengthen universal peace; 3. To achieve international cooperation in solving international problems of an economic, social, cultural, or humanitarian character, and in promoting and encouraging respect for human rights and for fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex, language, or religion; and 4. To be a center for harmonizing the actions of nations in the attainment of 1 these common ends." 1 Article 1 of the United Nation's Charter signed on June 26th 1945 at a ceremony in San Francisco. Ratified by both Britain and Argentina on October 24th 1945. 3 Article 73 'Members of the United Nations which have or assume responsibilities for the administration of territories whose peoples have not yet attained a full measure of self-government recognize the principle that the interests of the inhabitants of these territories are paramount, and accept as a sacred trust the obligation to promote to the utmost, within the system of international peace and security established by the present Charter, the well-being of the inhabitants of these territories, and, to this end: 1. to ensure, with due respect for the culture of the peoples concerned, their political, economic, social, and educational advancement, their just treatment, and their protection against abuses; 2. to develop self-government, to take due account of the political aspirations of the peoples, and to assist them in the progressive development of their free political institutions, according to the particular circumstances of each territory and its peoples and their varying stages of advancement; 3. to further international peace and security; 4. to promote constructive measures of development, to encourage research, and to co-operate with one another and, when and where appropriate, with specialized international bodies with a view to the practical achievement of the social, economic, and scientific purposes set forth in this Article; …' 4 Article 51 Nothing in the present Charter shall impair the inherent right of individual or collective self-defence if an armed attack occurs against a Member of the United Nations, until the Security Council has taken measures necessary to maintain international peace and security. Measures taken by Members in the exercise of this right of self-defence shall be immediately reported to the Security Council and shall not in any way affect the authority and responsibility of the Security Council under the present Charter to take at any time such action as it deems necessary in order to maintain or restore international peace and security. Resolution 637 (VII) (1952) “Whereas the right of peoples and nations to self-determination is a prerequisite to the full enjoyment of all fundamental human rights... The General Assembly recommends that; 1. The Member States of the United Nations shall uphold the principle of self- determination of all peoples and nations; 2. The Member States of the United Nations shall recognize and promote the realization of the right of self-determination of the peoples of Non-Self- Governing and Trust Territories … and shall facilitate the exercise of this right by the peoples of such Territories ….” 5 Introduction ◈ The Falklands War is the name popularly given to the conflict that took place during April, May and June of 1982 between the United Kingdom and Argentina. An undeclared war fought on two stages – the windswept archipelago in the South Atlantic; and the diplomatic chessboard based primarily at the United Nations in New York, albeit with side games taking place all around the world. The fighting was harsh on both fronts. On and around the Falkland Islands, 255 British lives were lost in a remarkable feat of arms that could not have succeeded if the diplomatic war had not been fought and won at the same time. This work is about that diplomatic war. It is about the political battles that led up to it. There are better works covering the detail of the military battles; so I have concentrated on a rather murkier world. As with my other works in this series, I have employed a time-line enhanced by the words of those involved. In this case retrieved from the many files recently released by the British Government under the 30 years rule. Historically, the Falklands War of 1982 was just the most violent skirmish in a long running diplomatic war of attrition that started between Britain and Spain in 1765. Shots were fired in 1770 without anyone getting hurt and, close though it became to a full blown war, British diplomacy won the day. Casualties were also avoided in 1833, when the Royal Navy suggested that a trespassing Argentine garrison should leave. That diplomatic engagement was still simmering 150 years later. It still burns today. This work is not about all of that history. Those details can be found in my other works – Falklands War: The First 400 Years; and the ever growing Falkland Islands History. The direct diplomatic roots of this skirmish can be tracked back to 1945 and the United Nation's founding Charter, and then to 1960 with Resolution 1514. The latter, in its turn, led to Resolution 2065 (1965) which raised Argentine hopes for its claims of sovereignty over what it saw as a British colony breaching its territorial integrity. This is about 1982. Roger Lorton January 2013 6 1960 - 1970 ◈ 1960 – in June Britain ratifies the Antarctic Treaty covering the area south of latitude 60°S. Sited outside of the designated area, South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands remain unaffected by the Treaty and the 'frozen' sovereignty claims within its zone. South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands are designated as 'Dependencies' of the Falkland Islands, reflecting the fact that while they are administered from the Falklands and share the same Governor, they remain separate for sovereignty purposes. Neither are listed at the United Nations for the purposes of decolonisation.2 rd September 23 , the Chairman of the Council of Ministers of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, Nikita Khrushchev, proposes a declaration on the granting of independence to colonial countries and peoples. th December 14 , the United Nations General Assembly passes a Resolution known as the Declaration of the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples. Resolution 1514 states, inter alia: “Conscious of the need for the creation of conditions of stability and well-being and peaceful and friendly relations based on respect for the principles of equal rights and self-determination of all peoples, and of universal respect for, and observance of, human rights and fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex, language or religion, … Affirming that peoples may, for their own ends, freely dispose of their natural wealth and resources without prejudice to any obligations arising out of international economic co-operation, based upon the principle of mutual benefit, and international law, ….. Convinced that all peoples have an inalienable right to complete freedom, the exercise of their sovereignty and the integrity of their national territory, Declares that: 1. The subjection of peoples to alien subjugation, domination and exploitation constitutes a denial of fundamental human rights, is contrary to the Charter of the United Nations and is an impediment to the promotion of world peace and co-operation. 2. All peoples have the right to self-determination; by virtue of that right they freely determine their political status and freely pursue their economic, social and cultural development. 5. Immediate steps shall be taken, in Trust and Non-Self-Governing Territories or all other territories which have not yet attained independence, to transfer all powers to the peoples of those territories, without any conditions or reservations, in accordance with their freely expressed will and desire, without any distinction as to race, creed or colour, in order to enable them to enjoy complete independence and freedom.i 2 In October 1946, Britain submitted a list of its colonies and other territories that it administered for the purposes of Article 73. South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands were not included, nor were any of the Antarctic or sub- Antarctic claims. The constitutional arrangements for these sub-Antarctic islands were subject of Letters Patent in 1908. Argentina made no claim until 1947 when Argentina President Peron issued Decree No. 14 062. 7 th December 15 , Resolution 1515 recognises the right of States to dispose of their own natural resources and on the same day, Resolution 1541 states; “ A Non-Self Governing Territory can be said to have reached a full measure of self-government by - (a) Emergence as a sovereign independent State; (b) Free association with an independent State; or (c) Integration with an independent State."3 th 1961 – March 14 , the British Government, in response to a speech by President Arturo Frondizi, reminds the Argentine Government that the Falkland Islands' Dependencies are British territory.