MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Thatcher almost resigned over Falklands

Margaret Thatcher came close to resigning as Prime Minister during the 1982 Falklands Conflict when her Foreign Secretary, Francis Pym, recommended to the War Cabinet proposals which she regarded as “unconditional surrender”.

In the second extract of her memoirs published in the London Times newspaper to mark the 20th anniversary, Lady Thatcher writes: "I could not have remained as Prime Minister if the War Cabinet had accepted Pym's proposals. I would have resigned".

The proposals were brought back by Pym after talks in Washington with US Secretary of State Al Haig who was attempting mediation with the Argentine junta.

Margaret Thatcher says these proposals would have required withdrawal and dispersal of the British Task Force within 15 days, abandonment of sanctions against Argentina, permitting the Argentines to flood the islands with their own people to change the nature of the population, and refusing the Islanders the choice of returning to British administration.

"Almost unlimited Argentine immigration"

"Did Francis Pym realise how much he had signed away?" she writes. "Why had we accepted almost unlimited Argentine immigration and acquisition of property on an equal basis with the Falkland Islanders?"

In fact the War Cabinet decided not to react because they believed Argentina would reject the requirement to withdraw its forces. Argentina did reject the proposals and effectively ended the negotiations.

She says she was appalled at Haig's suggestion -- rejected by Britain -- that notice should be given to Argentina of the intention to recapture South Georgia.

She admits she had nagging fears about aspects of the military operation, such as whether the task force had enough air cover, the whereabouts of enemy submarines, and was there time for a successful landing before the intolerable winter weather?

Belgrano sinking "justified"

She defends the order to the British submarine Conqueror to torpedo the cruiser General Belgrano after receiving "intelligence of the aggressive intentions of the Argentine fleet ". She says the ship's poor state of battle readiness greatly increased the casualties: 321 Argentine sailors died. Despite what she calls "the large amount of malicious and misleading nonsense" about the action, she says: "The decision to sink the Belgrano was taken for strictly military not political reasons. Subsequent events more than justified what was done. As a result of the dev