The Falklands War: 30 years on

Article by Ashley Smith. Edited by Tom Jackson. Additional Research by Rob Dann.

The 2nd April 2012 marked the 30th anniversary since Argentine forces invaded and occupied South Georgia and the Falkland Islands, a move which provoked the British government into dispatching a naval task force of 28,000 troops and 100 vessels to retake the islands. The conflict lasted for 74 days, costing the lives of 649 Argentine and 255 British military personnel. Ever since 1833, when Britain re-established control of the islands, there has been a protracted confrontation regarding their sovereignty. This issue is still at the forefront of British and Argentine politics. The current President of Argentina, socialist Cristina Fernández, has energetically pressed the debate over the island’s sovereignty. However, British Prime Minister David Cameron has stated that his government is absolutely committed to honouring the Islanders’ right of self-determination, with recent polls showing their continuing support for remaining under British control. 

Although the majority of the population of the Falkland Islands (3,140 in 2010) are of British descent, there are residents of French, Gibraltarian, and Scandinavian origins, reflecting the numerous instances in which the islands have been colonised by European nations. Margaret Thatcher, who was Prime Minister at the time of the 1980’s conflict, described the islanders as being ‘of British tradition and stock’. However, one controversy regarding the Falklands War is the issue of whether the loss of life incurred by both sides was a price worth paying for retaining the islands, especially considering the 8,000 miles which separates them from the British coastline. Furthermore, the islands are sometimes seen as an unwelcome relic of an imperial past. Recently, British politicians have questioned the wisdom of a continuation of British control, which costs the U.K approximately £200 million a year, over islands with questionable natural resources and a seemingly pointless access port for a navy which no longer rules the waves.

Among historians, a key debate over the war’s legacy concerns Mrs Thatcher’s 1983 general election landslide which was arguably a direct result of the war’s successful outcome the previous year. This is a particularly interesting debate in light of the fact that, before the conflict, the Labour Party had a decisive lead over the Conservatives in the opinion polls. Thatcher famously described the experience of victory in her memoirs stating that ‘everywhere I went after the war, Britain’s name meant something more than it had’, although she denied the influence of a ‘Falkland’s factor’ in the 1983 election, attributing her election success to domestic policies. 

The victory also appeared to mark an end to Britain’s inevitable international decline, which had been evident since the Suez debacle of 1956. Whereas America’s experience in Vietnam made war seem messy and unpredictable, Britain’s victory in 1982 suggested that it could achieve political ends quickly and efficiently. From another perspective, however, the triumph in the South Atlantic may have increased Britain’s appetite for more recent engagements including the Gulf War, Kosovo and the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Nevertheless, the Falklands War still inspires pride in Britain. The heroic stories of men such as Simon Weston, who survived 46% burns to become a figure representing British resistance against the Argentinean dictatorship, are championed to this day. Perhaps the most tangible impact of the war can be seen in defence spending. Due to the importance of the navy in the conflict, military expenditure was protected for much longer than it probably would have otherwise been. Ultimately, however, the Comprehensive Spending Review of 2010 resulted in a number of aircraft carriers, which were vital to the British victory, being scrapped.

Sir Lawrence Freedman, the war’s official historian, makes the point that Britain would struggle to recover the Falkland Islands should they be taken-over today, but defending them should be much easier due to the increased number of armed forces posted on the islands since the conflict. Furthermore, Jeremy Browne, the Foreign Minister responsible for Falklands’ policy, doubts that other South American powers such as Brazil have much of an interest in a regional economic blockade of the island, even though they support Argentina’s claim to the islands. 

Jeremy Browne has also observed that tension over the Falklands has not followed a predictable course over time and many outside factors have affected their political and cultural prominence. Today, the situation has intensified to a higher level than it was fifteen years ago. As well the recent thirtieth anniversary of the Falklands Conflict, a major catalyst for a resurgence of interest in the islands has been the 2010 discovery of offshore oil. Rockhopper Exploration PLC, an AIM listed oil and gas exploration company based in the UK, expects to begin drilling by 2016. This, in particular, has wider implications for the continued defence of the Falkland Islands, especially with a booming economy on the South American continent. 

It is fair to say that there is a legacy of pride surrounding victory in the Falkland Islands War. However, as the loss of life and financial expenditure incurred by both sides are still very much within recent memory, there are no signs that the two countries are likely to go to war again in the near future. Despite this, questions remain as to whether Britain should still own and maintain islands 8,000 miles away from the UK’s coastline. This issue is certain to be debated for years to come, particularly as Argentina’s government, spurred on by a booming economy, appears to be putting this issue at the top of their agenda. 

• The Falklands Conflict has featured in popular culture, inspiring such works as Pink Floyd’s 1983 album ‘The Final Cut’, Robert Wyatt’s song ‘Shipbuilding’ and Jack Higgins’s novel Exocet. 

• The code name for the Argentinian operation to land on the islands was ‘Rosario’, named after the Rosario Virgin.

• The only Latin-American country to assist Argentina in the conflict was Peru.

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