The British government said Tuesday it had not left behind any nuclear weapons taken to the South Atlantic for possible use in a 1982 war with Argentina over the Falklands islands.British ambassador to Buenos Aires Robin Christopher said in a note delivered to Argentina's foreign ministry that all the nuclear weapons aboard the British fleet returned to Britain in good condition and that no radiation leaked during the deployment.
Britain said Sunday that none of its ships sunk during the 1982 war over the Falklands, known to Argentines as the Malvinas, could have been carrying nuclear weapons.
Argentina's President Nestor Kirchner had demanded an apology after a British Defense Ministry spokesman admitted last week, however, that British ships carried nuclear depth charges.
On Friday, London said that while no nuclear arms entered the Falklands' territorial waters, it was likely they entered a 200-mile (322-kilometer) exclusion zone set up around the islands in 1982 by the British navy.
The conflict, sparked by Argentina's invasion of the islands -- held by Britain since 1833 -- claimed the lives of 648 Argentine soldiers and 255 British troops.
Argentina's military rulers had hoped retaking the territory would shore up their dictatorship. The humiliating loss had the opposite effect, with the restoration of democracy in 1983.
All rights reserved. Copyright 2003 Agence France-Presse. Sections of the information displayed on this page (dispatches, photographs, logos) are protected by intellectual property rights owned by Agence France-Presse. As a consequence, you may not copy, reproduce, modify, transmit, publish, display or in any way commercially exploit any of the content of this section without the prior written consent of Agence France-Presse.
Quick Links
SpaceWar
Search SpaceWar
Subscribe To SpaceWar Express
