The US position on the Falkland Islands was absurd during the 1982 war and remains equally absurd today. Newly released British records indicate that at the height of the conflict (and as the British were about to win a conclusive victory) President Reagan attempted to pressure Margaret Thatcher into a negotiated peace. Reagan apparently sought a solution in which the islands would come under the orbit of an international peacekeeping force. This was an idiotic and immoral suggestion. The islands represented British territory that had been forcibly seized by a foreign state. Had Thatcher accepted Reagan's proposal, she would have qualified British sovereignty and rewarded Argentinian aggression. While we sometimes have political disagreements in important areas (see my comments on the US-UK intelligence relationship and US-UK extradition treaty), on this issue the British deserve our unconditional support.
Unfortunately, the Obama Administration is maintaining a similarly idiotic policy position on the Falklands. By continuously calling for negotiations, the President is letting down our closest ally on an issue of paramount UK concern. It is unacceptable. Imagine if Britain was telling us to negotiate with Russia over the future sovereignty of Alaska.
Safe to say, we would not be happy.
Safe to say, we would not be happy.
