Compiled by: Oğuzcan Atış / Milliyet.com.tr – The tension between England and Israel is rising following the criticism of Andy Burnham's government, which took office in London about a month ago, against Israel. In his recent speech in parliament, British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband harshly condemned the attacks of Israeli settlers against Palestinians and announced that Britain would make a "comprehensive change" in its Israel policy. Following this statement, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu described England as the "Islamic Republic of Britain". Mutual statements extended to the Falkland Islands issue between Argentina and England, following the tension-related statements made by Yair Netanyahu, the son of Benjamin Netanyahu. Yair Netanyahu claimed that the Falkland Islands belong to Argentina, not England.
The Falkland Islands, currently under British administration, are located off the coast of Argentina in the southern Atlantic Ocean.
Yair Netanyahu does not hold a position in the Israeli government. However, it is noteworthy that his attack on the Falkland Islands coincided with the period when US President Donald Trump targeted the UK with a similar move. Trump recently announced that he may review the current stance of the United States regarding the United Kingdom's sovereignty over the Falkland Islands. Speaking after Trump's statement, Argentinian President Javier Milei escalated tensions with England by warning in his address to the nation that he would impose economic sanctions on companies that extract oil near the Falkland Islands. Milei said that "winds of change" support Argentina's claim to the islands, and signs that the United States may reconsider its stance of neutrality on the issue strengthen this claim.
'HIDDEN CONFLICT' BETWEEN ENGLAND AND ISRAEL
The Falkland Archipelago, located in the South Atlantic, has a population of approximately 3,600 people today. Although most of the people living on it support the islands being under British rule, the region occasionally causes ongoing disputes between Argentina and England, dating back to the 19th century. The period when this tension peaked is known as the 1980s. The crisis, which started in 1833 when Britain took over the administration by forcibly removing the Argentine garrison on the island, turned into a war in 1982. At that time, the military junta, which came to power in Argentina with a coup, occupied the islands in order to make Argentina forget the problems in domestic politics, and the tension gave way to war. After a bloody war that lasted 74 days and started with the then British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher sending a navy thousands of kilometers away, Britain regained control of the islands.
Harrier warplanes belonging to the British army, which took part in the Falklands war
Although Yair Netanyahu's recent sarcastic attitude towards England regarding the Falkland Islands is an unexpected departure for many people, this situation extends to a tension that has been forgotten between England and Israel, which have always had close relations since the Falklands War. The basis of this tension lies in Israel's arming of Argentina against England during the Falklands War in the 1980s.
Nearly a decade ago, declassified British government documents revealed that during the Falklands War, Israel secretly sold numerous weapons systems, including Skyhawk jets, to Argentina. The weapons provided by Israel to Argentina were used to bomb British troops around the islands, and the attacks caused the death of 48 soldiers and the sinking of 4 British warships. Although the Israeli government has consistently denied allegations that it supplied weapons to Argentina during the war, British officials informed the public by leaking documents to the media proving these secret arms sales by Israel.
'THEY ARE MAKING A GREAT EFFORT TO DRAW US'
Israel's arms shipment to Argentina during the Falklands War took place via cargo flights via Peru, another South American country. In addition to this information contained in a book written by Argentine journalist Hernan Dobry in 2011, Israel at that time sold Argentina air-to-air missiles, anti-tank mines, mortars, machine guns and additional fuel tanks to extend the range of warplanes, in addition to warplanes. All told, Israel sold nearly $1 billion worth of weapons to Argentina during its war with Britain.
Skyhawk fighter plane
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The Israeli government has repeatedly denied allegations that it armed Argentina; This led the British Foreign Office to leak details it had discovered about Israel's actions to the British press. The leaked documents clearly showed that Argentina was trying to secretly transfer money to the Swiss bank Credit Suisse through an intermediary in Panama to pay the Israeli Aeronautical Industries (IAI) company.
Patrick Moverly, who was the British Ambassador to Tel Aviv at the time, said, "The Israeli government is making a huge effort to deceive us" regarding the information that Israel was supplying weapons to Argentina. Another British official said: "The Israelis are apparently sending planes to Argentina, while at the same time giving us constant denials." he said.
THEY RESPONDED TO ENGLAND'S MIDDLE EAST POLICY WITH ARGENTINA
There were multiple reasons why Israel armed Argentina during the war with England. Israeli officials wanted the arms industry, which was developing in Israel at that time, to open up to new markets around the world, and entering the arms market in Latin America by selling to a country at war in this region would be a good start. This step could also be a response to Britain, which imposed an arms embargo on Israel at the time. The then Israeli Prime Minister, Menachem Begin, had a particularly tense attitude towards England, as he was one of the senior figures of the Irgun Zvai Leumi organization, which had caused the deaths of many British soldiers in the past.
Argentinian soldiers during the Falklands war
In addition to all this, Britain's current Middle East policy was also disturbing Tel Aviv. When Israel invaded Lebanon in 1982, British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher told US President Ronald Reagan that a balanced policy should be followed and warned that unlimited support to Israel would lead to reactions in the Arab world. Following the events, Thatcher decided to impose an arms embargo on Israel that would last until 1994 and expressed that Britain was disturbed by the events. Following these developments, the Israeli government led by Begin aimed to respond to England by selling arms to Argentina. The Israelis thought that with this move, they could force London to both lift the arms embargo and stop arms sales to Arab countries. However, this calculation did not work out. Not only did the Thatcher administration not step back, but it also hardened its stance by signing the Venice Declaration, which harshly condemned the illegal settlements established by Israel in the occupied Palestinian territories, and the relations between the two countries remained problematic for a long time due to what happened.
