Sovereignty of the Falkland Islands

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**Timeline of *de facto* control**
1764 – 1767	France
1765 – 1774	Great Britain
1767 – 1811	Spain
1811 – 1826	Uninhabited
1826 – 1833	Argentina
1833 – 1982	United Kingdom
1982 (April – June)	Argentina
1982 – present	United Kingdom

The sovereignty of the Falkland Islands (Malvinas in Spanish^[1]) has been the subject of dispute between the United Kingdom, Spain, France and Argentina (all controlling the islands at some point), lasting more than two centuries. The United Kingdom has exercised de facto, and claimed de jure, sovereignty over this archipelago in the South Atlantic since 1833. This claim to de jure sovereignty has been disputed by Argentina, a dispute which escalated in 1982 with Argentina's invasion of the islands resulting in the Falklands War. The contemporary Falkland Islanders consider themselves to be British and have British citizenship, although Argentina does not recognize self-determination rights to the inhabitants since they are not aboriginal and were brought to replace the Argentine population expelled by the British invasion of 1833^[2]

See also: History of the Falkland Islands

Location of the Falkland Islands

Claims of 16th century Spanish and English discovery have been advanced for centuries, but Dutchman Sebald de Weert's 1600 discovery is the earliest one that is accepted generally. France was the first country to establish de facto control in the Falkland Islands, with the foundation of Port Louis in East Falkland, in 1764. The French colony consisted of a small fort and some settlements with a population of around 250.

The British first landed on the Falklands in 1690, when Captain John Strong sailed through Falkland Sound, naming this passage of water after Anthony Cary, 5th Viscount Falkland, the First Lord of the Admiralty at that time. The British were keen to settle the islands, as they had the potential to be a strategic naval base for passage around Cape Horn. In 1765, Captain John Byron landed on Saunders Island. He then explored other islands' coasts and claimed the group for Britain. The following year, Captain John McBride returned to Port Egmont, on Saunders, to construct a fort. The British later discovered the French colony at Port Louis, and the first sovereignty dispute would begin.

Spain claimed the Falkland Islands under provisions in the Treaty of Utrecht which settled the limits of the Spanish Empire in the Americas, which included the Falkland Islands. When Spain discovered the British and French colonies on the Islands, a diplomatic row broke out between the claimants. As France was an ally of Spain at the time, an agreement was reached whereby control of Port Louis would transfer to Spanish control and Spain would repay the cost of the settlement. However Spain and Great Britain, although not at war, could not be described as allies.

The Spanish took control of Port Louis and renamed it Puerto Soledad in 1767. In 1770, a Spanish expedition expelled the British colony on Saunders and Spain assumed total control of the Islands. After a period of diplomatic intensity, with threat of war between Spain and Great Britain, the British returned to their colony, although it was later abandoned in 1774 with a plaque asserting British sovereignty left behind. In 1790 a dispute between the Spanish and the British on the North West coast of North America led to the Nootka Conventions, in which the claims to territories in the North West were settled and Britain renounced colonial ambitions in South America "and the islands adjacent"^{[citation needed]}.

Spain had since 1774 assumed uncontested sovereignty over the islands, called Malvinas by them, ruling them from Buenos Aires as part of the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata. The islands were abandoned by the Spanish in 1811, with a plaque asserting Spanish sovereignty left behind.

Luis Vernet

Argentina declared its independence from Spain in 1816. The new nation was formed from former provinces of the Viceroyalty of the Rio de la Plata and as such claimed sovereignty over the islands. The Argentine frigate Heroina was sent to the islands in 1820 to take possession of them and notify whaling vessels in the area of the Argentine claim. The first Argentine Governor, Daniel Jewitt was appointed in 1823.

In 1826 Argentines landed in the Malvinas and established a colony made up of a penal colony and a small fishing port. The fourth Argentine Governor, Luis Vernet was appointed in 1829. Vernet held substantial farming and trading interests in the Islands, and his appointment was an attempt by the Argentine government to foster its political and economic ties to the Islands.

In 1830, with the islands under Argentina control, the first islanders are born (including Malvina María Vernet y Saez, Governor Luis Vernet 's daughter )

One of the first acts by Vernet was to curb seal hunting on the Islands to conserve the dwindling seal population. In response the British consul in Buenos Aires protested the move and restated the UK's original claim.

Vernet later seized the American ship, Harriet, for breaking the restrictions on seal hunting. Property on board the ship was seized and the captain was returned to Buenos Aires to stand trial. The American Consul in Argentina protested the actions by Vernet, stating that the United States did not recognise Argentine sovereignty in the Falklands. The consul dispatched the warship USS Lexington to Puerto Soledad to retake the confiscated property.

However the captain of the Lexington went beyond his command and destroyed the Argentine settlement at Puerto Soledad. On leaving, the captain declared the Islands to be res nullius (free of all government) and returned to Montevideo. Governor Vernet returned to Buenos Aires after the attack but appointed an interim governor, Esteban José Francisco Mestivier, who arrived with his family to Puerto Soledad on the schooner "Sarandí" in October 1832.

After this the "Sarandí", commanded by captain José María Pinedo, went to patrol the surrounding seas, auxiliating a British schooner ("Rapid"), an American brig at the Magallanes strait and captured an American schooner hunting seals illegally. But as they returned to Puerto Soledad on December 29, 1832, they found the colony in uproar. In Pinedo's absence there had been a mutiny led by a man named Gomila; Mestivier had been murdered and his wife raped. The captain of the French vessel "Jean Jacques" had meanwhile provided assistance disarming and incarcerating the mutineers. Pinedo dispatched the mutineers to Buenos Aires with the British schooner "Rapid". Gomila himself would be condemned to exile, while six other mutineers were executed.

But the following day, January 1st, 1833, a British corvette commanded by Cap. John Onslow appeared declaring he had orders to put the colony under British flag within 24 hours. Pinedo asked if there had been a war declared between Argentina and Great Britain, and Onslow replied there was none, but on the following day he would reclaim the isles for the British Crown.

Pinedo was determined to resist, he summoned his officers and ordered them to load the artillery, but then had to face the fact that most of his men (about 80%) were British mercenaries. This was usual in the newly emancipated colonies in Latin America, where strong land armies were common, but experienced sailors were rare. Britain did not forbid British citizens to serve in foreign armies, as long as they did not take up arms against the British Crown. If they did, they could be hanged for treason.

Although Pinedo's men did not question his authority, they refused to fight their countrymen. Without sufficient forces to fight, he protested verbally and sailed back to Buenos Aires to organise a force to retake the islands.

Pinedo faced military trial and was suspended for four months and transferred to the land army, until he was called back to the navy in 1845. An open conflict with France and Great Britain, including a long Anglo-French blockade on Buenos Aires, prevented the Argentines from sending any expeditions to the isles, but they never renounced their claim to sovereignty.

The United Kingdom designated the Flag of the Falkland Islands in 1948, following the traditional Blue ensign design for British colonies.

After their return in 1833, the British began moves to begin a full fledged colony on the islands. A colonial administration was formed in 1842. This was expanded in 1908, when the UK unilaterally declared sovereignty over Antarctic territory south of the Falklands, including South Georgia, the South Sandwich Islands, and the South Orkney Islands, grouping them into the Falkland Islands Dependencies.

Following the introduction of the Antarctic Treaty System in 1959 the Falkland Island Dependencies were reduced to include South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands. Territory south of the 60th parallel was formed into a new dependency, the British Antarctic Territory which overlaps claims by Argentina (Argentine Antarctica) and Chile (Antártica Chilena Province).

Argentina has never recognised British sovereignty, and formally protested when the Falkland Islands dependencies were established. Argentina also began to claim all other British held islands in the South Atlantic, following the creation of the Falkland Islands Dependency. However, as the United Kingdom was the leading superpower at the time, it was inconceivable for the Argentines to successfully take the islands by military force. The UK had substantial naval power in the South Atlantic with a naval base in Stanley, and also at Simonstown in South Africa.

Argentine Air Force LADE 's Fokker F-28 used to serve the islands during the 1970s

Following World War II, the British Empire began a substantial decline, with colonies in Asia, Africa and the Caribbean gaining independence. Argentina saw this as an opportunity to push her case for regaining sovereignty over the Falkland Islands, and raised the issue in the United Nations. In 1964, the United Nations passed a resolution calling on the UK and Argentina to proceed with negotiations on finding a peaceful solution to the sovereignty question. [1]

A series of talks between the two nations took place over the next 17 years until 1981.^[3]

Although the issue of sovereignty was of little concern to the British public, the Argentine public still viewed the issue as of significant national interest. This was shown in 1966 when a group of Argentine students hijacked an aircraft, flew it to Port Stanley, and "arrested" two British officials after landing on the racecourse. The Royal Marines detachment on the islands arrested the men and returned them to the mainland to Argentine public acclaim.

The only visible progress in the talks was the authorization given to Argentina for the construction of the Port Stanley Airport. On July 3, 1971, the Argentine Air Force broke the islands' isolation by opening an air route with an amphibious flight from Comodoro Rivadavia with Grumman HU-16B Albatross aircraft operated by LADE, Argentina's military airline. In 1972, after Argentine request, the United Kingdom signed a Communications Agreement to fund an airstrip on the islands. On November 15, 1972, the runway was inaugurated with the first arrival of a Fokker F-27 with subsequent flights arriving twice weekly. Flights were improved in 1978 with Fokker F-28 jets. This service, representing the only connection to the islands, was maintained until the 1982 war.^[4] Also YPF, which at the time was the Argentine national oil and gas company, was in charge of supplying the island regularly.^[5]

The UK also conceded passport control over the Islanders to Argentina following Argentina's imposition of immigration controls to Falkland Islanders visiting the mainland.

Although the sovereignty discussions had some success in establishing economic and transport links between the Falklands and Argentina, there was no progress on the question of any transfer of sovereignty from the United Kingdom to Argentina. In 1976 the British Government commissioned a study on the future of the Falklands, looking at the ability of the Islands to sustain themselves, and the potential for economic development. The study was led by Lord Shackleton, son of the Antarctic explorer, Ernest Shackleton. Argentina reacted with fury to the study and refused to allow Lord Shackleton permission to travel to the Islands from Argentina, forcing the British to send a Royal Navy ship to transport him to the Islands. In response Argentina severed diplomatic links with the UK. An Argentine naval vessel later fired upon the ship carrying Shackleton as he visited his father's grave in South Georgia. [2]

Shackleton's report found that contrary to popular belief, the Falkland Islands actually provided a surplus by its economic activities and was not dependent on British aid to survive. However the report stressed the need for a political settlement if further economic growth was to be achieved, particularly from the exploitation of any natural resources in the water around the Islands.

HMS Alacrity was secretly dispatched to the Falkland Islands by the UK in 1977 to deter any possible Argentine invasion

In 1976, Argentina landed an expedition in Southern Thule, an island in the South Sandwich Islands which at that time was part of the Falkland Islands Dependency. The landing was reported in the UK only in 1978 although the UK government stated a rejection of the notion of sending a force of Royal Marines to dismantle the Argentine base, Corbeta Uruguay.

However, a more serious confrontation occurred in 1977 after the Argentine Navy cut off the fuel supply to Port Stanley Airport and stated they would no longer fly the Red Ensign in Falklands waters. (Traditionally ships in a foreign country's waters would fly the country's maritime flag as a courtesy.) The British Government suspected Argentina would attempt another expedition in the manner of its Southern Thule operation. James Callaghan, the British Prime Minister ordered the dispatch of a nuclear submarine, HMS Dreadnought and the frigates Alacrity and Phoebe to the South Atlantic, with rules of engagement set in the event of a clash with the Argentine navy. The British even considered setting up an exclusion zone around the islands, but this was rejected in case it escalated matters. None of this was ever made public at the time, and Callaghan only revealed the operation during Parliamentary debates in 1982 during the Falklands War.

In the end, no military action occurred and diplomatic relations between Argentina and the UK were restored.

Main article: Falklands War

The ARA General Belgrano sinks after being attacked by Royal Navy submarine HMS Conqueror during the War

The Falklands War of 1982 was the largest armed conflict over the sovereignty of the islands. The war was largely started following the occupation of South Georgia by Argentine scrap merchants. However the UK had also reduced its presence in the Islands by announcing the withdrawal of HMS Endurance, the Royal Navy's icebreaker ship and only permanent presence in the South Atlantic. The UK had also denied Falkland Islanders full British citizenship under the British Nationality Act 1981.

In 1982, Argentina was in the midst of a devastating economic crisis and large-scale civil unrest against the repressive military junta that was governing the country. On April 2, with Admiral Jorge Anaya, the Argentine Navy commander-in-chief at the time, as the main architect and supporter of the operation, a combined Argentine amphibious force invaded the Islands. Immediately, the UK severed diplomatic ties with Argentina, began to assemble a task force to retake the Islands and a diplomatic offensive began to gain support for economic and military sanctions. The United Nations Security Council issued the Resolution 502 calling on Argentina to withdraw forces from the Islands and to both parties to seek a diplomatic solution.^[6] Another resolution called for an immediate cease fire but was vetoed by both the United States and Britain.^[7] The European Community condemned the invasion and imposed economic sanctions on Argentina, although several EC states expressed reservations about British policy in this area, and two EC states (Denmark and Ireland) defected from cooperation.^[8] France and Germany also temporarily suspended several military contracts with the Argentine military. The United States supported mediated talks, via Secretary of State Alexander Haig and initially took a neutral stance, although in private substantial material aid was made available to the UK from the moment of invasion. The USA publicly supported the UK's position following the failure of peace talks after the sinking of Belgrano.

The British Task Force began offensive action against Argentina on April 23, 1982 and recaptured South Georgia following a short naval engagement. The operation to recover the Falkland Islands began May 1 and after fierce naval and air engagements an amphibious landing was made at San Carlos Bay on May 21. On June 14, the Argentine forces surrendered and control of the islands returned to the UK.

Following the Argentine surrender, two Royal Navy ships sailed to the South Sandwich Islands and expelled the Argentine settlers on Thule Island, leaving no Argentine presence in the Falkland Islands Dependency.

Following the 1982 war, the British increased their presence in the Falkland Islands. RAF Mount Pleasant was constructed, which allowed fighter jets to be based on the islands and strengthen the UK's ability to reinforce the Islands at short notice. The military garrison was also increased substantially. A new garrison was also established on South Georgia. The Royal Navy South Atlantic patrol was strengthened to include both HMS Endurance and a Falkland Islands guard ship.

As well as the military build-up, the UK also passed the British Nationality (Falkland Islands) Act 1983 which granted full British citizenship to the islanders. High profile British dignitaries also visited the islands to show British commitment to the islands, including Margaret Thatcher, the Prince of Wales and Princess Alexandra. The UK has also pursued links to the islands from Chile, which had provided help to British Forces during the Falklands War. LAN now provides a direct air link to Chile from Mount Pleasant.

In 1985, the Falkland Islands Dependency was split into the Falkland Islands proper and a new separate territory of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands.

Relations between the UK and Argentina remained hostile following 1982, and diplomatic relations were not restored until 1989. Although the United Nations General Assembly passed a resolution calling for the UK and Argentina to return to negotiations over the Islands' future ([3]), the UK ruled out any further talks over the Islands' sovereignty. The UK also maintained an arms embargo against Argentina that was initiated during the 1982 war, which forced Argentine armed forces, a traditionally UK buyer, switch to other markets.

Queen Elizabeth II greets Carlos Menem at Buckingham Palace, London in October 1998.

Relations improved further in the 1990s between the UK and Argentina. In 1998, Carlos Menem, the President of Argentina visited London, where he reaffirmed his country's claims to the Islands, although he stated that Argentina would use only peaceful means for their recovery. In 2001, Tony Blair, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom visited Argentina where he stated that he hoped the UK and Argentina could resolve their differences that led to the 1982 war. However, no talks on sovereignty took place during the visit. His reception in Argentina was more welcoming than that of Diana, Princess of Wales in 1995, who was heckled by the mother of an Argentine soldier killed in the war.

In May 2005, some English tabloid newspapers reported that Argentina might be considering another invasion of the Islands. The Sunday Express carried the frontpage headline, "Falklands Invasion Alert" on its May 22 edition, citing an increase in Argentine military activity near the Islands, as well as a reported increase in the British garrison, including a Royal Navy ship carrying tactical nuclear weapons (the last Royal Navy tactical nuclear weapons were withdrawn in the late 1990s). The only nuclear armed RN vessels currently in service are the four Vanguard class submarines, which are armed with Trident. Two days later, India Daily published speculation that the islands could be a nuclear flashpoint in the future if Argentina were to gain a nuclear arsenal, citing the findings of an unnamed international thinktank. [4]. There was no official comment on the stories by the British or Argentine governments, and other writers have denounced the stories as "nonsense" [5].

In 2007, Queen Elizabeth II and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh will visit the Islands, the first ever visit by a reigning monarch, in time for the 25th anniversary of the 1982 war.

A sign at the Argentine-Brazilian border, translated into English, proclaims "The Falklands are Argentine" to visitors entering the country from Brazil. Similar signs are located in each frontier crossing of the country.

The Argentine government has maintained a claim over the Falkland Islands since 1833. Supporters of the Argentine position make the following claims:

Sovereignty of the islands was transferred to Argentina from Spain upon independence (a principle known as Uti Possidetis Juris ).
Spain never renounced sovereignty over the islands, even when a British settlement existed.
Great Britain abandoned their settlement in 1774, and formally renounced sovereignty in the Nootka Sound Convention. Argentina has always claimed the Falklands, and never renounced its claim.
The UK invasion in 1833 was illegal under international law.
The islands are located on the continental shelf facing Argentina, which would give them a claim, as stated in the 1958 UN Convention on the Continental Shelf. [6]
The UK invasion of 1833 was protested and never recognized by Argentina, and since then, has vindicating its right reclamation permanently to bilateral and multilateral levels.^[9]
Argentina does not recognize self-determination rights to the inhabitants since they are not aboriginal and were brought to replace the Argentine population expelled by the British invasion of 1833, something even recognized by UN Res. 2065^[10]
Great Britain was looking to extend its territories in Americas as shown with the British invasions of the Río de la Plata years earlier.
In April 2007 the Argentinian government renewed their claim over the island^[11]

Regardless of any historical claims, counter-claims, or territorial disputes, the only current United Kingdom position concerns the right of the islanders to self determination.

The right of the fifth-generation islanders to self determination outweighs any historical French, Spanish, or Argentine claims.

Map of the Falkland Islands

The International position on the sovereignty of the islands is varied, with some countries supporting the British claim; with others supporting the Argentine claim. Some countries maintain a neutrality on the issue.

The General Assembly of the United Nations explicitly addressed the issue of the Falkland Islands in 1965 for the first time, which Resolution 2065 noted "the existence of a dispute between the Governments of Argentina and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland concerning sovereignty over [said] Islands", and invited those governments "to proceed without delay with ... negotiations ... with a view to finding a peaceful solution to the problem ..."

The UN General Assembly and the UN Decolonization Committee have repeated this call for the resumption of negotiations since then,^[12] and especially since the resoration of democracy in Argentina in 1983.[7]

On June 6, 2006 the Organization of American States (OAS) voted unanimously in favour of the Argentine proposal to restart the negotiations. [8][9]

The European Union classes the islands as a special overseas territory, subject to EU law in some areas, and eligible for some European funding initiatives. The inclusion of the islands in an appendix to the proposed European constitution provoked a hostile Argentine response.

France has been particularly supportive of the British position, and provided invaluable help to the British military on the French supplied aircraft and missiles of the Argentine military during the Falklands War. France is also motivated by the fact that it, like the UK, retains many overseas territories that are subject to rival sovereignty claims including the Glorioso Islands, Mayotte and Tromelin.

The Commonwealth of Nations recognises the islands as a British territory. The Falkland Islands are not represented in the Commonwealth as they are not an independent state, but they do participate in the Commonwealth Games.

Another sign in Córdoba, Argentina, proclaims that country's claim to the Islands alongside a UK telephone booth

Peru is the most vocal supporter of the Argentine claim, and provided material aid during the Falklands War. Brazil and Mexico have also spoken in favour of the Argentine claim. Chile supported the United Kingdom during the Falklands War, but the post-Pinochet democratic governments have given greater support to the Argentine claim [10] [11]. Also, President Hugo Chávez of Venezuela has publicly supported the Argentine claim saying, "Those islands are Argentina's. Return them, Mr. Blair, those islands are Argentina's." [12]

Spain, although part of the European Union, has given tacit support to the Argentine claim, voting in the Argentine interest in UN Security Council votes during the Falklands War. Argentina, for its part, supports Spain's claim to Gibraltar, also under British sovereignty.

The Andean Community and Mercosur have supported the Argentine claim since their creation.

Although maintaining a neutral view, the UN's position for decades has been to ask both parties to begin negotiations regarding this dispute. This is Argentina's position.

The United States maintains official neutrality on the islands' sovereignty. Despite this, the US provided material aid and intelligence to the British during the Falklands War. The CIA World Factbook lists the islands as Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas); and CIA maps state that the islands are administered by the United Kingdom and claimed by Argentina.

During the 1982 war, the Soviet Union and the Warsaw Pact countries maintained an official neutrality, despite Argentine diplomatic attempts to acquire support at the United Nations Security Council. Although the UK feared possible Soviet interference by providing Argentina with satellite intelligence or arms, Argentina confirmed after the war that no support was received. The People's Republic of China has also officially maintained neutrality on the issue. PRC atlases and maps label the islands as being disputed between Argentina and the United Kingdom, and consistently show the sinicized Argentine names (e.g. Malvinas, Puerto Argentino) in a larger font first, followed by the sinicized British names (e.g. Falklands, Stanley) in a smaller font in parentheses.

During the 1982 war some anti-war commentators claimed that for the same amount of money that Britain was spending on the war it would have been possible to relocate the entire population of the Falklands to Scotland and give them a house and a million pounds each.

Those defending the government policy countered that as the population of the Falklands were overwhelmingly in favour of the Islands remaining British it would be wrong for the Government to relocate them from their homeland. Similar reasoning is used to defend British policy in Gibraltar and Northern Ireland.

In addition, many Britons felt strongly that a surrender of sovereignty in the face of Argentina's actions would have signalled the end of any pretentions that Britain may have had to act as a global power, whether at the time or into the future.^[13]