89 with the EU, EU trade talks are proceeding with Mercosur, the South American trading bloc, possibly leading to a far-reaching multinational trade regime (Resende, 2021). Finally, international consensus around the UK’s claims to their overseas territories is weakening, highlighted by the UK overwhelmingly losing a UN vote on a territorial islands dispute with Mauritius (United Nations, 2019). Renewed international activism against the legacies of colonialism has brought the Islands dispute back onto the international stage to be addressed by the UN. Analysis of these three forces leads to a conclusion that scaffolds a possible deal, one that rethinks the relationship between Argentina, the UK, and the Islands, thereby ending nearly two centuries of tension and unproductive impasse. History of the Territorial Dispute Since the earliest attempts at settlement of the Islands more than 250 years ago, several countries have claimed sovereignty. The first small outposts on the Islands were French (1764) and then British (1766), creating the first disputed sovereignty claims. The French agreed (1766) to sell the Islands to Spain, putting them under control of the Captain General of Buenos Aires (a Spanish colony at the time). The Spanish then forced the British from their port (1770), but diplomacy among the UK, Spain, and France restored the port to British control (1771). In 1774, the British withdrew their military forces to focus resources on the American revolution. To claim continued sovereignty over the port, the UK simply left a plaque. The Spanish then controlled the Islands for many years, even though the absent British had not relinquished formal claims. In 1811, Spain withdrew all troops and governance to deal with revolutions elsewhere in its South American colonies. The Spanish-ruled colonial territory, the Viceroyalty of Río de la Plata, declared independence from Spain in 1816, creating independent territories, including Argentina, under the United Provinces of the River Plate (Falkland Islands Government, 2012). With Argentine independence, a complex situation became more complicated. From 1811 to 1823, the Islands essentially were ungoverned until a private Buenos Aires citizen attempted to establish a settlement on the Islands with the help of unpaid Argentine government officials. The settlement (1826) was successfully established at Puerto de la Soledad, originally a Spanish military outpost, with land grants countersigned by the British Consul in Buenos Aires (Falkland Islands Government, 2012). Argentina made its first claim of sovereignty over the Islands in 1829 based on inheritance from Spain; the UK formally protested and proclaimed sovereignty. Shortly thereafter in 1831, to assert fishing rights around the Islands, Argentina seized three American ships. In retaliation, a USS warship, the Lexington, destroyed the Argentine settlement and military defenses. The Lexington’s captain deemed the Islands free of all governments, and the US exclusively recognized British sovereignty (Falkland Islands Government, 2012; Ruzza, 2011). In 1833, the UK decided to act on the sovereignty claim, and the Islands—via de facto sovereignty—became UK overseas territories; the British sent a warship to expel the remaining Argentine force and administration (Ruzza, 2011). By 1845, the British had established a formal colonial government for the Islands. Except for the two months’ Argentine invasion in 1982, the British have controlled the Islands uninterrupted ever since (Falkland Islands Government, 2012). Argentina has publicly opposed the UK’s sovereignty claim since 1833. Nevertheless, the two countries’ economies flourished together for more than 100 years after the UK took control. In 1852, after the standing Argentine government was overthrown by a competing faction, the two countries enacted a treaty allowing free trade. With increased trade, infrastructure to support more efficient movement of goods and materials was needed. In 1853, a new Argentine Constitution committed the government to constructing railways and navigation canals to foster industries that promoted foreign investment. This construction was made possible with capital investment from the UK, largely in the form of loans. As a result, imports and exports increased significantly, as did the entire economy. By 1895, the UK was Argentina’s single most important market, accounting for 20% of all exports (Ferns, 1950).
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