Posted on 02/23/2014 9:56:12 PM PST by 2ndDivisionVet
Argentina is preparing for a war either against Britain or Argentines. No one is sure as the country acquires military hardware that includes, jet fighters, anti-aircraft guns and specialized radar. The news came late Saturday night, just a few months before oil drilling begins in the Falkland Islands area.
Besieged by runaway inflation, corruption and inefficiency in government as well as being impotent to stop rampant crime, Argentina’s failing President, Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner, seems to be taking a page from history’s playbook. In January she created a new cabinet position, Secretary for the Malvinas, Argentina’s name for the Falklands.
Kirchner has set aside $750 million, a 33 percent rise, for over 30 military modernization programs. In addition to the aircraft and anti-aircraft weaponry, Kirchner is also using some of the set aside to buy medium tanks, transport aircraft as well as rocket systems, helicopters and the development of drones. Casa Rosada, “The Pink House,” announced that new commando and special forces units will also be formed.
The military hardware is in addition to 20 French Mirage fighters which Argentina bought from Spain in August 2013. The fighters, along with the new shopping list, will give the Argentina president the ability to strike Port Stanley in the Falklands with pin point accuracy.
Sources with Rockhopper Exploration, a British firm, have confirmed reports that drilling may begin very soon. The Sea Lion field in the Falklands is believed to have an oil reserve of 390 million barrels.
Kirchner’s administration has sent several hundred letters to Britain firms promising fines of up to $1.5 billion and 15-year-jail terms if drilling happens without Argentina’s consent. While the intimidation has no standing in international law, they are widely seen as examples of the efforts the president will expend in order to boost flagging domestic support.
Admiral Lord West, commanded the HMS Ardent and was at the helm when it was sunk during the Falklands War. West said a major increase in expenditure by Argentina must be looked upon with concern. Britain will not have any aircraft carriers operational until 2020. The six-year window presents plenty of opportunity for Argentina to act.
While many observers feel the military build up is in anticipation of another attack on the Falklands, others aren’t so sure. As unrest at home grows, Kirchner has announced that she stands in solidarity with the embattled Nicolas Maduro, President of riot torn Venezuela. In various pronouncements, Kirchner has already declared that she will do whatever is necessary to keep the violence from coming to Argentina.
Military Presence to be Used Against Argentines?
In Buenos Aires lately, another theory is shaping up in the coffee houses. The military buildup is to be used to keep the Argentines in line as the violence in Venezuela continues to threaten expansion.
David Gambarin, 90, still puts on a suit and goes to his office in downtown Buenos Aires. A real-estate broker, Gambarin says that the country has always had instability. “This is how we Argentines are,” he says.
A little over a decade after the last crash in 2001, Argentina is on the edge of melting down again. The peso fell in value by 23 percent in January and economists are saying that inflation and recession will follow. Kirchner is restricting access to dollars and is threatening shopkeepers with foreclosure.
Like most people here, Gambarin is resigned about the tumult. An immigrant from Russia, Gambarin was a boy when he got to Argentina and has lived through five coups. Gambarin remembers that in the 1980s, inflation rates rose so quickly that shoppers literally ran to the checkout lines to pay for their purchase before the items were marked up again.
Economists classify Argentina as an “emerging market,” but the country’s economy has been on the slide for 100 years. In 1910, Argentina was among the world’s 10 wealthiest countries, today its per capita income is not even half that of the US.
While people discuss the reason behind the military buildup, there is not any debate about the cause of Argentina’s problems. “Bad government,” says economist Marina Dal Poggetto. For decades, Argentina’s leaders have spent wildly during the good years and forgot to save for the bad ones. To keep the good times rolling, the government has borrowed heavily or just turned to the printing press to turn out more money.
The wall behind Dal Poggeto’s desk is filled with picture frames containing rows of Argentine currencies which have been used and discarded in faulty economic plans. Argentina has lopped off 13 zeroes from its bank notes since 1969. In 1991, the 10,000 austral note was replaced by the one peso note which was worth $1 (USD). Today, that same one peso note is worth 9 cents.
For the poorest of Argentines, crises mean calamity. With no access to American dollars, the poor watch as inflation eliminates the purchasing power of their salaries putting them in a position where they cannot buy food. Mobs in the thousands looted supermarkets throughout Argentina in the crises of 1989 and 2001.
Economists say that in the best case, inflation in Argentina will head to 35 percent to 40 percent and the economy will stagnate. The worst case scenario is too difficult for them to put into words.
Whether the buildup in Argentina is in anticipation of new drilling in the Falklands or preparation for violent protests, a look at Argentine history reveals something unsettling. South America’s second largest country is destined to experience a meltdown about once per decade. There isn’t much anyone can do about it.
Gambarin says he already knows what will happen. “Nothing. Nothing will happen,” he said. “We are used to this. Every few years things get wiped out. Someone else will come along promising to fix Argentina. But everything will remain the same.”
And Britain was ruined by the the statists who ousted Thatcher. Who will win in a war of weakened powers?
Time will tell, but I am betting this military buildup has more to do with the Plastic Queen watching with horror as Venezuela falls apart. She just can’t fathom the greedy serfs picking the jewels from her crown.
British submarines will take out the Argentine Navy. All you have to say is “Belgrano” and see what happens.
I’m willing to bet that the Brits have lots of Harrier Jump jets still left either on or near the Falklands. The US, in one of its stupidest demilitarization moves in recent times, stopped buying them from England so our units had to buy older British models to cannibalize them for parts.
They were extremely effective in Iraq and if they haven’t been used in Afghanistan, they should be. Can on on your driveway and packs a deadly punch.
Another of one of Obama’s lets get our troops killed while I can.
As I recall, a squadron of Typhoons are based on the Falklands.
The entire Argentine Air Force wouldn't be a match for them.
The RAF has a flight of Typhoons stationed at Mount pleasant.
We shouldn’t laugh too hard after letting the Bush dynasty, the Clintons and the Chicago grifters take us apart.
Oh, I don’t laugh. It’s the good people who live on the islands who will suffer if something goes bad. In a lot of Britain’s far-flung outposts, the people have retained their moral character, being distant from the squalor.
Don't buy green bananas. Just sayin'
I think “president” Cruz will put us back on track, just as President Reagan did after the hapless, misguided Carter administration. I was there and saw it with my own two eyes, although I was a spear carrier Spec/5.
The Brits will need more that a squadron of Typhoons to deal with the Argentinians, if that is all they have on the islands.
That is unless there is some damned good, long range AA missiles around to take out the Ars early on.
However, aren’t the Typhoons also bombers? If so, they would be better suited to hitting the mainland or at least the Argentinian Navy (assuming the subs don’t get them all).
One should always have a mix & match air force when confronted by a possible attack. That is why the Harriers are so important. Can land on a dime, carry a mixed weapons payload, and also act as fighters. Which is exactly why the US dropped them. Too efficient and not very costly.
The Brits also have the old Blowpipe AA missile and I assume a couple newer generations of them we haven’t seen. Hopefully every household in the Falklands has one in the closet.
British logistical systems are for crap. It was the US that helped the Brits in the 1980’s resupply their forces.
That is why an aircraft carrier is so important, even if it is only a small one. Lesson not learned by the British even as far back as WW2 (Believe they lost the Ark and the Dove to the Japs which killed their offensive and defensive capabilities re Singapore, Burma, etc.
Well, it looks like the country is about to divide. Crimea saw massive secessionist protests in the ‘capital’ of Sevastapol today. They want nothing to do with the protesters in Kiev.
The Brits also keep naval assets in the area including attack subs.
The UK has a squadron of Typhoon fighters based on the main Falkland Islands. They have retired their jump jets.
But the Typhoons are very modern and very capable and will handle any old Mirages or A-4s the Argentines still have.
A single British nuclear attack submarine will handle the entire Argentine Navy...or what is left of it.
Prospects for a successful Argentine operation against the Falklands are very poor...even without the UK carriers.
The Brits had no aircraft carrier stationed in Asian waters at the beginning of WW II.
You are probably referring to the loss of the battleship HMS Prince of Wales and battle cruiser HMS Repulse, sunk by land-based Japanese planes off Malaya in December, 1941 -- eliminating the major units of the RN in the Far East.
The Ark Royal was sunk by a U-boat off Gibraltar.
The Typhoons are very capable, and can serve in either the air superiority role or the attack role. They can carry any of the modern A2A missiles from AIM-9X to ASRAAMs to AMRAAMs.
They would be more than a match for anything the Argentines could throw at them. They would have to hold until reinforcement aircraft got there...which would be quickly forthcoming in the event of an attack.
You’re right. Got my ships mixed up. Those loses crippled the British Navy’s fighting abilities in Asia and hurt them in the European Theater.
As I recall, British carrier planes destroyed the Italian navy at Taranto Bay by using aerial torpedoes with devastating effect.
Can’t get to my WW2 history books right now so I’m winging it.
Pssssst! Wrong conflict.
You got it right. The raid was conducted by Swordfish biplanes off the deck of the Illustrious.
Ah, sorry wrong thread. haha. But still, a very interesting development!
Brits have 4 Typhoons and a company of infantry at Mt. Pleasant in the Falklands.
Might not sound like much but the Typhoon is a much more modern aircraft than anything Argentina is deploying.
Unlike in 1982, Argentina has little ability to land troops in the Falklands, their LST, the Cabo San Antonio, left service 20 years ago.
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