MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency
Falklands “turning point for Britain”
Coinciding with her articles, the Times praises Margaret Thatcher's handling of the Falklands crisis, declaring that “re-examination of the conflict shows that Baroness Thatcher earned her international reputation through true leadership. She was not lucky. She deserved it”.
A Times leading article describes how "deeply unpopular" she was in Britain prior to the conflict, and how she won a landslide election victory afterwards.
Many argue that Thatcher was saved by a "freak event". "Opposition parties, believing they had been bested because of what they thought were silly little islands, miles from anywhere, full of sheep and with no value to Britain, for years talked bitterly of the unconvenanted bonus provided to Mrs Thatcher by the ?Falklands factor'".
Dispelling defeatist atmosphereThe Times says the twentieth anniversary "should prompt more mature reflection... Whatever their strategic importance, the decision to take back the islands and ensure that Argentina did not benefit from the use of force was a turning point in British public policy. It helped to dispel a defeatist atmosphere which had contributed to Britain's relative decline. It demonstrated that the country could achieve its aims with sufficient will...It is obvious that winning the Falklands War was as important to Mrs Thatcher's project to transform Britain as any of her economic policies. It was a central event rather than an accidental and fortunate diversion".
Harold Briley, (MP)London
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