The Falklands & Diplomatic Failure

The news that several Caribbean Commonwealth countries have backed Argentina's stance over the Falkland Islands is surprising, even if they desire regional unity it seems perverse given that the legitimacy of historic British territorial claims is the basis of their legal standing in any boundary disputes, Guyana and Belize in particular have their territory disputed by neighbours so should be aghast at the idea that British territorial claims have been superseded.

It also shows how bad this government is at diplomacy, during the Falkland's War the British position was backed unanimously by the Commonwealth and no Latin American nation unambiguously supported Argentina. Today we have a 180 degree flip.

The incident also demonstrates how self destructive Argentina's obsession is, if oil is discovered in the territorial waters of the Falklands, Argentina could benefit enormously from being the location of all the refineries and other facilities but they prefer to nurse a grievance over their pretty weak claim. Working with the Falklanders might even diminish their justified hostility towards the Argentinians, perhaps making future generations willing to consider the sovereignty issues.