Malvinas 1982. Symmetrical Misunderstandings and Overreactions Lead the Way to War

Abstract

In 1982 Argentina and the United Kingdom faced an unwanted war for the sovereignty over the Malvinas, Georgias and Sandwich del Sur Islands. A 149 years territorial conflict, developed into a high-intensity war only few days a minor incident had occurred in a remote and isolated place called Leith, in Georgias del Sur. The study analyzes and evaluates the information from first sources available in 2002, but discarding opinions, false information or misinterpretations from other authors. The study describes the evolution of the conflict, the daily development of the crisis generated in Georgias based on their protagonists' testimonies and documents. It seeks to determine the real facts, decisions, and declarations that led two friendly nations to war. Twenty years ago, the forces were marching south in order to solve an old issue over the disputed archipelagos. Today, as in the past, the central issue of sovereignty remains unsolved due to British intransigency. It is time to learn the real lessons of this unwanted, misunderstood war.

Open PDF

Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Jan 01, 2002
Accession Number
ADA404419

Entities

People

  • Sergio Fernandez

Organizations

  • United States Army War College

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Ground and Sea Platforms
  • Human Systems
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Agreements
  • Boats
  • European Communities
  • Falkland Islands
  • Geography
  • Governments
  • International Law
  • International Relations
  • Law
  • Military Personnel
  • Navy
  • Negotiations
  • New York
  • Nuclear Powered Submarines
  • United Kingdom
  • United States
  • War Colleges

Readers

  • Military History of the United States in the 20th Century.
  • Small Business Innovation Research Program (SBIR) EDI Research and Innovation.
  • Strategic Security Studies