Within the framework of the 41st anniversary of the Falklands Warthe Government faces a new escalation of tension with the United Kingdom for procrastination and “British reluctance” in the implementation of a new stage of the Malvinas Humanitarian Project Plan (PPH).
The task organized as a result of an understanding between Argentina, the United Kingdom and the International Red Cross consists of the identification of fallen soldiers in the Islands and is in the third instance of the processwhich aims to investigate six new cases on Bourbon Island and one in another part of the territory.
From the Foreign Ministry led by Santiago Cafiero, they indicated that there is no suspension of assistance, but a motorized negotiation instance “due to the British reluctance” to advance in the new stage. Besides, They clarified that the delay has nothing to do with the government’s decision to annul the Foradori-Duncan pact announced in March.
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The clarification refers to the decision of the president Alberto Fernandez to cancel the pact signed in 2016, under the administration of Mauricio Macri, which granted concessions to the interests of the United Kingdom regarding the exploitation of natural resources in the Malvinas Islands and affected the request for sovereignty.
The Humanitarian Project Plan on the Islands began in December 2017 and its first stage ended in January 2018, making it possible to prepare a report that details the tasks carried out and their results and the precision of the objects found in the graves of the fallen.
The advance was possible thanks to the DNA samples provided by the relatives and the result of 88 cases was achieved.
Guillermo Carmona spoke of “objections” and “Chicanas” in the negotiation
The Secretary of Malvinas, Antarctica and South Atlantic, William Carmona, said in dialogue with Noticias Argentinas that, At its inception, the understanding developed positively, and identified “the first symptoms of difficulty” during the last quarter of 2022when the government of Rishi Sunak reported that “there was reluctance on the part of the illegitimate island legislature” regarding flights to the territory for the completion of the second stage of the mission.
Despite the tension, the second instance of the mission took place and allowed the identification of two new soldiers.
The ministries of Social Development and the Interior, the Secretariat of Human Rights and Cultural Pluralism, the Foreign Ministry, the Ulloa Center, the General Notary of the Nation and the Argentine Forensic Anthropology Team (EAAF) were also part of the task.
“A humanitarian question cannot be subject to a reluctance to the inhabitants of the Islands“, raised Carmona, in charge of the negotiation with the United Kingdom to advance in the realization of the second stage, and continued:” One of the things that came up was that we requested the identification of those who died on Borbón Island, in the cemetery of Darwin, and we requested the information, about another case that was in another point that was neither the cemetery nor the island. That first case was the first sign of reluctance.”
Along the same lines, he revealed that he had to suspend his trip to Geneva scheduled for December 16, the date on which the third phase of the Humanitarian Plan would be signed, after the ambassador in that city, Federico Villegas, reported that he perceived delay due to part of the British government.
“After that objections began that were expressed in the negotiation that I do not hesitate to classify them as Chicanas”affirmed the secretary who responds to Cafiero while describing that among the provocations, doubts were raised as to whether the fallen soldiers should be buried in the places where they were found or if they should be transferred to the Darwin cemetery along with the rest.
“The refusal that has been looming on the part of the British Government has nothing to do with Foradori-Duncan, which we communicated on March 3, when the negotiation was underway,” Carmona clarified, adding: “On the other hand, we saw with I am concerned about the fact that the humanitarian issue was often mixed up with the flight to Brazil, given the lack of gestures to establish a direct flight. We had been seeing that there was no predisposition”.
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He also held that the United Kingdom “use the humanitarian as a lever for other interests”among them, establishing flights to third countries and thus avoiding direct ones, a constant claim, something that the Government considers unacceptable, and denounced: “They mix humanitarian issues with political issues, such as, for example, introducing other Kosovar troops to the Malvinas, That does not affect dialogue processes. We protest and we see the aftershocks in the delays.”
In March, when the foreign minister met with his British counterpart James Cleverly to inform me of the termination of the Foradori-Duncan pact, he clarified through a written note that the decision did not involve humanitarian aspects, for this reason, from the Foreign Ministry they argue that the British determination does not respond to the announcement since they consider that the reluctance dates back months.
Carmona also said that the British ambassador, Kirsty Hayes, seeks to “attribute the fact that we annulled the Foradori-Duncan pact” and stressed that the identification process responds to international humanitarian law. “They, with Macri, managed to use the humanitarian as a lever for their interests of a different nature and they continue to do so,” he stressed regarding the intentions of the Sunak administration.
Finally, the Malvinas secretary stated that he maintains expectations of concluding the third stage, and transferred the responsibility to the British administration, stating that “what is missing is for the United Kingdom to sign the agreement.”
ag / ds
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