Argentinian blockade of the falklands

Alonso Quijano

New Member
It doesnt really matter who got there first and who has a more legitimate claim over the islands, The British Occupy them and arent gonna give them up unless defeated militarily, in this age of limited oil reserves they are just too important, also they offer a claim on antartica, UN resolutions are unimportant

Personally i think that we shoud reinforce our defences on the island, perhaps some more aircraft and definitely some ssn's patroling the waters,

I also think that if the argentinians were to try to retake the islands, attacks against targets on their mainland should not be ruled out
and to end the party not to forget a massive attack with nuclear bombs ...

is something that always looks good ...
 

MrQuintus

New Member
Does anyone have a list of what the RN has "awaiting disposal" post decommisioning? It would be interesting to see just what can be regenerated in short order should the need arise (or if we'd simply like to annoy the argies :) )
 

riksavage

Banned Member
The Falkland Island today are unrecognisable, the whole islands infrastructure has gone from zero (based around Stanley in 82) to an efficient road / communications network throughout the Islands. The population has doubled, and subject to the ongoing oil exploration, could double again.

The issue of the RN taking back the islands is total nonsense, because the current garrison can mitigate any threat posed by an invasion party based on a 3:1 ratio of attacker vs defender. In 1982 30 Marines defended the Island (SLR's GPMG's, LMG's, Charlie G and a single Wombat), today we have 1000 plus warm bodies armed with modern guided weapons capable of fighting day or night supported by one of the most modern fighter jets in the world. Argentina doesn't have the resources to move enough SF/Marines to the Island to deal with the garrison without being detected. You then add the rapid reaction battalion (UK Para's - 24 hours notice to move) to the equation and the Argies will have to add another brigade to deal with the sudden increase in high quality battle hardened tier two assets.

The Islands are self-sufficient in food and water, the only real issue is fuel, so a sudden blockade by the Argentine Navy will last 15 days at most (SSN travelling time from UK waters), after that their fleet will be mince meat.

The Argies could launch wave after wave of obsolete fighter aircraft against the Islands, these would suffer a terrible attrition rate (Typhoon, Rapier & Sarstreak), and still not guarantee boots on the ground.
 

Ananda

The Bunker Group
The Argies could launch wave after wave of obsolete fighter aircraft against the Islands, these would suffer a terrible attrition rate (Typhoon, Rapier & Sarstreak), and still not guarantee boots on the ground.
Waves after waves..?? Little bit optimistic rick ? Now the Argies only have A4 M that can reach and do some loitering in the islands, and the operational number Max at 20..I'm afraid they can only do one wave at the best...

Lets see...20 A4 M agaist 4 Typhoon...Hmmm...:rolleyes:
 

StevoJH

The Bunker Group
Waves after waves..?? Little bit optimistic rick ? Now the Argies only have A4 M that can reach and do some loitering in the islands, and the operational number Max at 20..I'm afraid they can only do one wave at the best...

Lets see...20 A4 M agaist 4 Typhoon...Hmmm...:rolleyes:
20 Assuming all "operational" aircraft are servicable at the time. ;)
 

Firn

Active Member
IMHO this is nothing but a stunt aimed at the Argentine public. The key differences compared to 1982 are the different political landscapes and the different military capabilities. Blockade sounds harsh enough to please the public, but not too aggressive and gun touting to alarm it.


Firn
 

AndrewMI

New Member
I'm afraid this is inaccurate.

Argentinas main claim is historical, with geographical proximity being a minor factor. The islands were claimed by Spain from the early 17th century (& possibly earlier, if the islands sighted & claimed, but not accurately located, from Spanish ships in the early 16th century were the Falklands), & governed by Spain from the 1760s. The first settlement, & hence effective claim, was French (BTW, the Spanish name is a Spanish version of the French name - Les Malouines, from St. Malo) - and subsequently ceded to Spain, & the Spanish claim recognised by France. The Spanish withdrew their garrison when wars elsewhere needed the troops, & governed the islands from Buenos Aires (with regular official visits to oversee the itinerant whalers & sealers there) until Argentinas war of independence.

Argentina has claimed since becoming independent that it inherited the islands from Spain at independence. It attempted to enforce its claim from about 1819 until forcibly ejected by the UK in the 1830s.

The first British attempt to settle the islands was a couple of years after the French settlement - 1766, IIRC. After a few years squabbling with the French & then Spanish, the settlement was abandoned in the early 1770s. There was no further British attempt to occupy the islands until 1834, i.e. 18 years after Argentinean independence. It is therefore wrong to say that the islands were part of the UK, or even a British possession, before Argentina existed. BTW, they never have been part of the UK. They're in a different category, & always have been.

Spain holds that Britain recognised the Spanish claim in the Treaty of Utrecht (1713). The United Kingdom disagrees with that interpretation of the treaty.

The main (IMO only) strength of the British claim is based on 176 years of uninterrupted possession, 169 years of settlement, & the wishes of the inhabitants. That's a pretty solid basis, & I believe perfectly adequate. There is no need to embellish it, & IMO making false claims about 'part of the UK', 'settled for 300 years' (not you, I know, but I've seen it) undermine, rather than strengthen, our claim.

BTW, there's one little legal oddity. The first purchase of land in the Falklands was made by the precursor of the Falklands Islands Company from a man called Louis Vernet, who was then (1840) visiting London. Vernet owned the land because it had been granted to him in the 1820s by the United Provinces (now Argentina). The British government recognised the validity of that land sale, which implies that it accepted the validity of the Argentinean land grant. :D Oops!
I bow to clearly superior knowledge on this matter.
 

riksavage

Banned Member
The Argentines have openly admitted today (news reports) that they do not have the capacity to retake the Islands. Whilst the Falklands garrison and associated infrastructure has improved the Argentine military capacity has deteriorated too much since embracing democracy. They have however persuaded the rest of South America and the Caribbean to back their cause.

According to the BBC - South America and the Caribbean states Leaders at the ongoing summit, between the Rio Group and the Caribbean Community (Caricom) have discussed plans for a new pan-American alliance which would exclude Canada and the United States, they have also strongly backed the Argentine claims to all reserves on the continental shelf, which includes the contested territory.

If Oil is found in the exclusion zone Stanley will turn into Aberdeen, with Anglo-Australian, UK, US & Canadian companies flocking to the islands thus expanding the current population, this represents a worst case scenario for the Argentines because it ties in more than just the UK. The US needs to secure future reserves and is wary of South American politicking, having a friendly source of carbons in the South Atlantic is a win, win scenario for them.

The threat of RN SSN's has even got Chavez going, he has just had a rant on the subject! No country South of the Rio Grande has anything credible in their armoury to mitigate such a threat, particularly in the deep, dark waters surrounding the Falklands.
 

windscorpion

New Member
Be nice if our allies would give us their backing on this.

Be interesting to see which carribbean countries are supporting Argentina, considering some of them have the same head of state as... the Falklands. :rolleyes:
 

swerve

Super Moderator
Be interesting to see which carribbean countries are supporting Argentina, considering some of them have the same head of state as... the Falklands. :rolleyes:
i.e. -
Antigua
The Bahamas
Barbados
Belize
Grenada
Jamaica
St Kitts & Nevis
St Lucia
St Vincent & the Grenadines
:D
 

Alonso Quijano

New Member
i.e. -
Antigua
The Bahamas
Barbados
Belize
Grenada
Jamaica
St Kitts & Nevis
St Lucia
St Vincent & the Grenadines
:D
The Caribbean is also bathed in Venezuela where Chavez wants to install Russian bases.
this man is a revolutionary and I think he intends to do what he did Fidel Castro with the missile crisis in Cuba.
and by the Russian side this may be a response to the placement of missile defense shield by NATO in eastern europe.
 

Warwiz

New Member
The Argentines have openly admitted today (news reports) that they do not have the capacity to retake the Islands. Whilst the Falklands garrison and associated infrastructure has improved the Argentine military capacity has deteriorated too much since embracing democracy. They have however persuaded the rest of South America and the Caribbean to back their cause.

According to the BBC - South America and the Caribbean states Leaders at the ongoing summit, between the Rio Group and the Caribbean Community (Caricom) have discussed plans for a new pan-American alliance which would exclude Canada and the United States, they have also strongly backed the Argentine claims to all reserves on the continental shelf, which includes the contested territory.

___________________________________________________
In this politically correct world, it would be best for Argentina to play the victim in this, they already have most of the nations in South America on their side, and if they play their cards right they may win the sympathy of the 48 million plus Hispanics/Latino that live in the US, which they can use in influence the US. But this is all What if....BTW this is my first post...not sure if I'm doing it right.
 

Warwiz

New Member
If Oil is found in the exclusion zone Stanley will turn into Aberdeen, with Anglo-Australian, UK, US & Canadian companies flocking to the islands thus expanding the current population, this represents a worst case scenario for the Argentines because it ties in more than just the UK. The US needs to secure future reserves and is wary of South American politicking, having a friendly source of carbons in the South Atlantic is a win, win scenario for them.
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All the nations you just mentioned are Anglo and Protestant orientated, and they will be digging for oil in an area that is mostly Catholic and Latin, this will cause more anger across Latin America. This is going to get interesting if a massive deposit of oil is found, and Latin nations see themselves as getting poorer and the Anglos richer. This would play right into the hands of leaders like Chavez and friends.
 

Warwiz

New Member
I think that UK should not worry about the Argentine forces, we can not say they are just very good armed, any military action by the Argentines would be a joke ...
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If Argentina is ever serious in taking back the Malvinas/Falkland’s, then may I suggest that they do like North Korea and Pakistan, that is built a strong military no matter what, even if it means that the people have to eat dirt, if they are not willing to do so, then they are not serious about the Falkland’s, the way the Pakistani and Indians are serious about Kashmir. The other solution is to play the victim.
 

Thiel

Member
I think that UK should not worry about the Argentine forces, we can not say they are just very good armed, any military action by the Argentines would be a joke ...
======================
If Argentina is ever serious in taking back the Malvinas/Falkland’s, then may I suggest that they do like North Korea and Pakistan, that is built a strong military no matter what, even if it means that the people have to eat dirt, if they are not willing to do so, then they are not serious about the Falkland’s, the way the Pakistani and Indians are serious about Kashmir. The other solution is to play the victim.
They already tried that back in the eighties. Remember how that went?
 

Warwiz

New Member
They already tried that back in the eighties. Remember how that went?
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What I met was a very serious military build-up, not one that just gets by, like what they have today. N Korea has a very serious large military and so does Pakistan, and yet those nations are very poor. They sacrifice a better way of living in order to have a military to defend themselves and interest. If Argentina was serious about the Malvinas/Falkland’s, they would spend most of their 300 billion economies on their military even if it met the people had to eat dirt. The other option is play the victim and hope for a political victory or just simply do nothing at all and shut up and hope to by oil from the English.

Perhaps they can reach an agreement where Argentina can purchase discounted oil from the Falklands?
 

Alonso Quijano

New Member
are now making ballistic missile tests ...

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0dVyA1CHCws&feature=related]YouTube - Misil Tronador[/ame]
 
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