A group of Argentine intellectuals, academics and free-thinkers have criticized President Cristina Fernandez government strategy of confronting the UK on the Malvinas Islands sovereignty dispute and called for dialogue that guarantees the self determination of the Falkland Islanders.
Uruguayan president Jose Mujica said that the presence of Prince William, heir to the British Crown, in the Malvinas Islands is a gesture “not at all nice” and called for the dispute with Argentina not to become military because it’s no good for anybody, least for the region.
Spain’s Secretary of State for International Cooperation and Ibero-America Jesus Gracia begins Wednesday in Argentina his first trip to South America with the purpose of reviewing bilateral relations and reporting on the preparations for the coming Ibero-American summit to be held in Cadiz.
Argentina has fallen prisoner of two conflicting positions on the Malvinas Islands issue which lead no where in the objective of claiming sovereignty over the South Atlantic Islands, says Carlos Perez Llana a former Argentine ambassador in Paris and political science and diplomacy professor.
The Argentine minister Hector Timerman presentation before the United Nations claiming the “militarization of the South Atlantic” from the Falklands by the UK does not seem to be having the expected echo according to press reports from Buenos Aires, based on correspondents’ contributions from New York.
A private Argentine report warns that the current diplomatic dispute over the Falklands/Malvinas could have an impact on bilateral trade with the UK which last year totalled over 1.4 billion dollars with a 150 million surplus for Buenos Aires.
A group of Argentine writers, historians, constitutional law experts, politicians and journalists will be making a formal presentation in support of the Falkland Islanders right to self-determination. They have also criticized the constant harassment to which Islanders are exposed from the administration of President Cristina Fernandez.
Argentine members of the opposition have warned that they will not attend a Friday special session of the Senate and Lower House Foreign Affairs committees to be held in Tierra del Fuego and dedicated to the Malvinas issue unless the overall position of the diplomatic conflict is openly debated.
By Dr Tim Stanley - During his recent tour of Argentina and Uruguay as UN ambassador at large for Haiti made some unfortunate statements regarding the Falklands/Malvinas diplomatic dispute arguing that It would be nothing short of bullying, to not sit down and diplomatically negotiate a fair sharing of any resources discovered between Argentina and the United Kingdom.
By Dr. Barry Elsby - The Falkland Islands are home to a thriving community. In the face of escalating rhetoric, that community must have the right to determine its own future, argues Dr Barry Elsby MLA