MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

Argentina demands prior approval for vessels sailing to Falklands

Cabinet Chief Anibal Fernandez making the announcement

The Argentine government made public Tuesday a decree that requires prior approval for ships sailing between Argentina and the Falkland Islands. The approval will be needed for vessels travelling “or carrying goods directly or indirectly” between the mainland and the Islands, announced cabinet chief Anibal Fernandez during a press conference at Government House.

“We must make take these decisions in the defence of Argentina’s interests” that include sovereignty and natural resources, said Fernández. He added that Britain contrary to repeated United Nations reiterated declarations has “insisted in unilateral actions” ignoring the non innovation principle while the dispute is on.

The announcement comes amid escalating tensions with the United Kingdom as several oil companies prepare to drill exploratory wells to the north and south of the Falklands based on licences awarded by the Falklands elected government

Last week the Argentine government detained a British flag cargo vessel which was loading seamless pipes, allegedly for Egypt, since the vessel had called on the Falklands/Malvinas with no Argentine government authorization.

The decree signed by President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner states that “all vessels trying to transit between Argentine continental ports and Islands’ ports, or cross Argentine maritime spaces heading to a port in the Islands must request prior authorization from the Argentine government”.

To enforce the decree the cabinet chief office will create “a commission made up with representatives from the Ministries of Planning, Justice, Economy and Foreign Affairs, that will coordinate actions to implement the decree”.

The cabinet chief said that faced with the exploration for hydrocarbons in the Falklands/Malvinas maritime spaces, the Argentine government “has insisted in all world forums about the need to adjust to multilateralism and UN resolutions”.

“The UK has repeatedly confirmed its negative to abide by UN General Assembly resolutions which recognizes the existence of a sovereignty matter which demands negotiations. The UK has ignored the resolution not to innovate, which has been evidenced in the successive episodes of natural resources exploration”, added Fernandez.

Although the purpose of the latest decree as had been anticipated by Argentine authorities is clearly geared to discourage oil companies from exploring in Falklands waters by limiting the logistics and creating a sense of “lack of legal security”, it is consistent with the Kirchners policy towards the Falkland Islands dispute.

There are no direct maritime links between the Falklands and Argentina but foreign flagged fishing vessels did operate on both sides until Buenos Aires passed legislation, which forced fishing companies to opt, with severe sanctions for those companies that “directly or indirectly” retained business operations in the Islands.

The current decree based on the same spirit could also potentially have a great impact on the cruise business since most South Atlantic itineraries include Argentine ports, mainly Ushuaia, gateway to Antarctica and the Falklands.

If the decree is fully applied and the “special committee” turns out to be “lazy” or “particularly distracted” in extending authorizations for cruise vessels to navigate in the South Atlantic and call in the Falklands, the consequences could be serious for the whole industry.

On the other hand., when Argentina is attempting to return to voluntary money markets, and must reach an agreement with pending bond holders and the Club of Paris, (a multilateral government-to-government financial organization that helps bail out developing countries with soft loans), the political move is not particularly attractive, even when the nationalistic chord of a weak government will have a big echo domestically.