RUSSIA NOW QUESTIONS BRITAIN'S CLAIM TO THE FALKLANDS

Update : 12/17/2015

RUSSIA COMPARES THE ARGENTINE 

CLAIM TO THE FALKLANDS TO THE 

RUSSIAN CLAIM TO THE CRIMEA

 PD

The Brits Reinforce Their Garrison. Obama Ignores Situation Oblivious To The Monroe Doctrine And The Distress of Our Alley Britain.   

 On March 24, 2015  Alexander Yakovenko ,the Russian Ambassador in London was publicly critical of Great Britain's claim on the Falklands, South Atlantic Islands settled by British subjects and licensees over two hundred years ago and continuously ruled by Britain ever since.  Yakovenko disparaged the publicite held in the Falklands in 2013 in which 99.8% of the inhabitants of the Falklands indicated that they wanted to remain British subjects. Who can blame them? They are all English speakers, with deep roots in the islands, and Argentina is a failed state incapable of governing itself ,now a vassal of Russia.  In the 1980s Argentina invaded  causing hundreds of British combat deaths and about four civilian deaths on the islands. Given the fact that most everybody on the islands knows everyone else those four civilian deaths were sorely felt. Resentment and fear of Argentina runs high on the Islands. Yet Yakovenko compared the Argentine claim to the Falklands to the Russian claim to the Crimea. 

 The Crimea was gifted to the Ukraine by a Soviet Union prime minister born in Ukraine, back when the Ukraine was solidly in the Soviet system. At the time of the Russian seizure there were many Russian speakers living in the region with personal allegiances to Russia. None of which is an excuse for seizure of sovereign territory by force of arms. However, Argentina doesn't have anything like that relationship to the Falklands. Argentina didn't exist as a nation when a now defunct confederacy of which it was a part ended its contested claim to the then uninhabited islands.  Great Britain exerted a prior claim at that point and backed it up with a naval occupation followed by settlers.   The Brits did license some settlers from the South American mainland and their descendants account for the occasional Spanish surnames on the Island today. But everyone has been a British subject since day one . The English language and British law has been the regime of the islands for about two hundred years. The Brits have a perfect title to the islands based on effective settlement, established administration, and consent of the governed. The Argentines have no claim, but now they are backed by Russian military might while Britain's military has been shrinking for years and the U.S. is solidly in hands of a leftist, idiotic governing elite . 

 Britain's response to the Russian implied threat has been immediate. Michael Fallon, the British Defence Secretary , was quoted as saying the Islands will be ready to repel "any pertinent threat".  Fallon's statement followed not only Yakovenko 's statements but also reports that the Russians are going to lease 12 Su-24 long range bombers to Argentina in exchange for beef and wheat (argentine money being worthless).  Britain is now committed to spending over 180 million pounds over the next decade in upgrading the island's defenses. Two troop carrying Chinook helicopters and some surface to air defensive missile systems are on the way to the Falklands. Unfortunately these two "new helicopters" simply replace two that were withdrawn from the Islands in 2006. Britain will be severely challenged in providing a  real deterrent force if Russia is willing to pay for a real invasive force for the Argentines. Of course regular visits from U.S. Atlantic fleet units and a supporting posture from the United States would suffice along with an affordable build up from Britain to deter even a Russia backed Argentina. Unfortunately with no adult leadership in Washington and none in sight for at least 24 months, Britain is on its own.

                                                                   

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