So, I’m disappointed by the sheer volume of boneheads out there misinterpreting what has been said and Piers Morgan.
The U.S. is only considering its position on supporting Argentina’s claim to the Falkland Islands. Nowhere has there been any mention of the U.S. taking over sovereign UK territory, which makes Piers Morgan look like an enormous prat for his comments. But what’s new there?
And then there are the idiots saying that should Argentina choose, they could just walk into Port Stanley unopposed, such is the parlous state of the UK military. Uninformed opinions such as these can prove exceptionally dangerous, if the media chooses to amplify such false bravado.
Contrary to popular opinions in these rumours, President Milei is, at best, ambivalent about the Falklands. For a start, he’s not a military man. Giving the military bragging rights is not that high on his list, given Argentina’s past dalliances with military dictatorships.
Then there is the weak, toothless UK military. What we didn’t have last time was the RAF detachment at RAF Mount Pleasant. The four Eurofighter Typhoons stationed there, along with their tanker support, render any aerial threat unwise. They seriously outmatch anything the Argentinians can field and don’t rely on U.S. supplied AAMs to make a real mess of the opposition well outside of visual range. And we can get reinforcements there if needed, either more Typhoons, or F-35B Thunderpigs 🤮
And although the Royal Navy is lacking in surface ships at the moment, a single Astute class hunter-killer submarine would keep the Argentine navy in port. They have nothing that can detect one, as the U.S. navy has found out before.
In 1982, the Falkland Islands were “unprepared” to repel an Argentine invasion, some say by neglect and some say by design. This time around, getting an invasion force from the mainland to the Falklands would be prohibitively expensive, in terms of men and matériels, for Argentina to even consider. Even then, rather than a detachment of around 100 Royal Marines, an invasion force would face a UK contingent on the island numbering around 2,000 service personnel.
Lastly, should the U.S. actually complete a volte face and support an Argentinian claim, they run the risk of losing the biggest, most reliable aircraft carrier in the U.S. arsenal. The UK itself. And even though Keir Starmer is possibly the most feeble excuse for a PM in history, the fact that it would be the result of U.S. policy might just prompt the Labour Party to get him to stick two fingers up at the U.S. and make it happen.
Let’s hope not.