The Falklands War started on Friday, April, 2nd in 1982.
Amid a devastating economic crisis and large-scale civil protests against the new military government Buenos Aires initiated the war by invading the long disputed Falkland Islands a group of many small islands with two large, main islands located about 4-hundred-80 kilometers off the coast of Eastern Argentina.
The Argentine military government was seeking to divert public attention from the nation's poor economy and the regime's ongoing human rights violations.
It calculated that Britain would never respond military-wise due to its geographical proximity and predicted that Argentina would ultimately win over the territory.
However a 74-day-long battle resulted in the deaths of 6-hundred-49 Argentines and 2-hundred-55 British soldiers before Argentina surrendered on June 14th.
Since then, there hasn't been much conflict until the British company Desire Petroleum recently began drilling for oil in the territorial waters off the Falkland Islands, despite strong opposition from Argentina.
[Interview : Daniel Palmieri
Vice President of the Malvinas Soldiers Group] "The trauma that a war brings cannot be erased, we don't want to return to that, but something has to be done. If they begin like this, today they come for oil, tomorrow they come for land and then for water."
With the support from 32 neigbouring Latin American and Caribbean nations received at a regional summit held in Mexico Argentina is hoping for the UN to finally resolve the sovereignty dispute over the islands.
[Interview : Cristina Fernandez
Argentine President ] "I think the important thing is that we have achieved very strong support, something that legitimizes our claims fundamentally against the new petroleum activity being carried out."
However, London maintains a firm stance over its sovereignty of the Falkland Islands, which are home to 3-thousand people of British descent.
[Interview : David Wright Miliband
United Kingdom Foreign Secretary
] " British sovereignty in respect of Falkslands is absolutely clear in an international law and international politics."
Meanwhile, a UN official said UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon considered Argentina's concerns over the Falkland Islands and reiterated that "his good offices are available when requested by all parties in the dispute."
Yang Ji-woo, Arirang News.
MAR 01, 2010
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Friday, SEP 03, 2010, (KST) 
