MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Argentine “eternal gratitude” to Peru for Malvinas support

Argentina officially expressed “eternal gratitude” to Peru for its support during the 1982 Falklands/Malvinas conflict and its permanent solidarity in the sovereignty claim over the Islands

This month marks the 25th anniversary of the end of the South Atlantic conflict when Argentine forces surrendered to the British Task Force sent to recover the Islands which had been invaded on April 2 of 1982. "In these days I can't but express once again the eternal gratitude of the Argentine people and nation to the people of Peru for their unconditional solidarity and support of the Malvinas cause. We are not ungrateful people and will always remember in our hearts the generosity of the Peruvian people towards us. This is the feeling of all the Argentine people which I'm expressing: thank you Peruvian brothers for your permanent solidarity in the Malvinas cause", said Foreign Affairs Secretary Jorge Taiana on Friday on receiving a delegation headed by his Peruvian counterpart Jose Antonio Garcia Belaúnde. During the ceremony at the San Martin Palace, seat of the Argentine Foreign Office, Taiana honored Garcia Belaunde with the Order of the Liberator General Jose de San Martin, "a historic figure we Argentines and Peruvians share, respect and admire". Garcia Belaunde said the bilateral relation with Argentina has proved to be resistant to time since both countries share common visions on the region, on how the world order should be and on international mechanisms be it on the political, economic, trade or human rights fields, "which opens the possibility to work jointly in the international scenario". In 1982, when the Argentine/British armed engagement was about to begin then Peruvian president Fernando Belaunde Terry came up with a mediation proposal involving the United Nations, which was almost accepted by both sides but events on the sea/air theatre finally proved stronger. Following the war it was revealed that Peru, a natural rival of Chile, openly supported Argentina with aircraft spares, munitions, equipment and allegedly even with a couple of the deadly French built Exocet missiles. Asked by the Argentine press about the United Kingdom's 25th anniversary activities, Taiana said the British "are not interested in commemorating but rather celebrating" and recalled that the Argentine government "perceived this", when last February it rejected an informal proposal from the UK to share a joint event, allegedly "commemorative". Earlier in the morning the Peruvian delegation participated in the unveiling of a bust of President Fernando Belaunde Terry in downtown Buenos Aires, "a simple but symbolic way of expressing our permanent gratitude to the Peruvian people for their solidarity with Argentina and the Malvinas cause", said Agustin Colombo Sierra, head of the Latinamerican Desk in the Argentine Foreign Affairs ministry. Taiana was not present because he only returned at midday from Geneva, where he participated with First Lady Cristina Kirchner in the International Labor Organization assembly. "Twenty five years have gone since the Malvinas war in which President Belaunde had an important peace initiative which drowned with the sinking of the cruiser ARA Belgrano. Later Belaunde made a contribution to the Argentine Armed Forces, giving evidence of Latinamerican and Peruvian solidarity with Argentina", said Peruvian Foreign Affairs Minister Garcia Belaunde at the ceremony. Friday evening Mr Garcia Belaunde was scheduled to give a conference at CARI, the Argentine Council for International Relations.