Falklands War

Analysis

Military

Militarily, the Falklands War was important for a number of reasons.

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It was one of the few major naval battles so far to have occurred after the end of World War II. As such this conflict illustrated the vulnerability of surface ships to anti-ship missiles and reaffirmed the effectiveness of aircraft in naval warfare. The viability of stealth (in the form of submarines) again proved its usefulness, much as it did during World War II and the Cold War.

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Neither side achieved total air supremacy, but the power of air forces during a conflict like this proved invaluable, due to the isolated, rough landscape of the Falklands. Air strikes were staged against ground, sea and air targets on both sides and often with clear results. All of the UK losses at sea were achieved by the FAA. The French Exocet missile proved its lethality in air-to-surface operations.

Related Topics:
Exocet missile - Air-to-surface

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It vindicated the UK decision to develop the VTOL Harrier aircraft, that showed its capability of operating from forward bases with no runways. At sea it demonstrated the domination of airpower in major engagements and the usefulness of carriers.

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The logistic capability of the UK armed forces was stretched to the absolute limit in order to mount an amphibious operation so far from a home-base, onto mountainous islands which have few roads. After the war much work was done to improve both the logistic and amphibious capability of the Royal Navy.

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The role of special forces units, which destroyed many Argentine aircraft, and carried out intelligence gathering operations, was reaffirmed.

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The usefulness of helicopters in combat, logistic, and casevac operations was reaffirmed.

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At sea, some shortcomings of warship design were made apparent, particularly the danger of using aluminium in ships (although it did not catch fire, it melted in the heat). Nylon was shown to be a poor choice of fabric in uniforms, as it is more flammable than cotton and also melts with heat, sticking the incendiary fabric to the skin and causing avoidable casualties.

Related Topics:
Aluminium - Nylon

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Political

The Falklands War illustrates the role of political miscalculation and miscommunication in creating war. Both sides seriously underestimated the importance of the Falklands to the other. The Falklands War illustrates the role of chance in determining what happens in a war. Some commentators believe that the war could have ended in an Argentine victory if one of the Exocets had hit an aircraft carrier, or if the frequent unexploded bombs had detonated on striking some of the ships (75% of the British task force was damaged or sunk), or if Argentina had attacked the British artillery, using the three paratroop regiments already deployed at Comodoro Rivadavia. Equally, if the Argentines had made better preparations to hold the islands, they might have been able to do so, but they did not expect that the British would attempt to carry out a war 6000 miles (10,000 km) from home. Either way, an Argentine victory may have been an unacceptable show of weakness on the part of the UK during an intense period of the Cold War, and as a result some have doubted that such an outcome would have been allowed to remain for long. With the UK being an integral US ally and important part of NATO, to permit a loss would have been a signal to the USSR that the NATO alliance was militarily and politically weak.

Related Topics:
Comodoro Rivadavia - Cold War - NATO - USSR

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The war cost the UK 255 men, six ships (10 others were very badly damaged), thirty-four aircraft, and more than 1.6 billion pounds, but the campaign was considered a great victory for the United Kingdom. The war provided a substantial boost to the popularity of Margaret Thatcher and played a role in ensuring her re-election in 1983. Several members of her government resigned, including the former Foreign Secretary Lord Carrington. It has also been said by diplomats that following the British victory there was an increase in international respect for Britain, formerly regarded as a fading colonial power. As mentioned earlier, the victory was not overlooked by the USSR, who increased troop levels facing the British Army of the Rhine soon after, and was an important junction in the Cold War.

Related Topics:
Re-election in 1983 - Foreign Secretary - Lord Carrington

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However, it is believed that with the renewed confidence gained from the victory, Margaret Thatcher suggested in her 1983 China visit an extension of the British rule of the New Territories in Hong Kong, which was to legally end in 1997 with the expiry of the 99-year lease (Beijing never actually recognized any of the 19th century treaties over Hong Kong).

Related Topics:
1983 - Hong Kong - 1997 - Beijing

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She was famously rebuffed during a meeting with then Chinese leader Deng Xiaoping with comments such as "China is no Argentina," and "We can order troops into Hong Kong this afternoon." Formal discussions of British withdrawal from the territory started after this Beijing visit and Hong Kong was returned to China on July 1, 1997.

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However, on the day of the handover of Hong Kong, former British Foreign Secretary Douglas Hurd remarked to Argentine Foreign Minister Guido di Tella; "I know what you're thinking, but you will never see this happen in Port Stanley."

Related Topics:
Douglas Hurd - Guido di Tella

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On the other hand, the Argentine military government was ousted after mounting protests by human rights and war veterans groups. Galtieri was forced to resign, paving the way for the restoration of democracy. Elections were held on October 30, 1983 and Raúl Alfonsín, the Radical Civic Union (UCR) party candidate, took office on December 10, 1983. Alfonsín defeated Italo Luder, the candidate for the Justicialist Party (Peronist movement).

Related Topics:
October 30 - 1983 - Raúl Alfonsín - Radical Civic Union - December 10 - Italo Luder - Justicialist Party - Peronist

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Weapon Export Controls

The Coordinating Committee for Multilateral Export Controls (COCOM) failed to anticipate a conflict between Argentina and the UK when approving weapon export to Argentina.

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Medical

During the operations, several wounded British soldiers had to spend hours in the cold before receiving medical aid; famously, no British soldiers evacuated to medical aid stations died. Many recovered beyond what medicine of the time thought possible, and subsequent theories have suggested that this was due to the extreme cold (similar anecdotal tales had originated during the bitter winter fighting of the Korean War).

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