# The Malvinas/Falklands in Argentine culture and politics **URL:** \ **Category:** Great Debates\ **Tags:** middle-earth, football-soccer-fifa, trump\ **Created:** [July 18, 2026, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-malvinas-falklands-in-argentine-culture-and-politics/1031774 "2026-07-18T21:07:06Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2026, 5:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-malvinas-falklands-in-argentine-culture-and-politics/1031774/41 "2026-07-19T17:18:00Z")
> [@Filbert](#): > > Scotland largely just support whoever’s playing England… During the Euros last time I could tell every time someone scored against England because I could hear one of my neighbours cheer. Yes, this is common, but there’s no Scotland-Argentina connection. The Wales-Argentina connections are deep, and historically they’ve been an issue between the UK and Argentina, though again as far as I’m aware the connections have all been pretty positive since about WWII. But there was serious concern for a while that Britain would pull a Malvinas in Patagonia, too, when it wasn’t definitively and sustainably integrated into Argentina. There’s an English connection too ([British in Southern Patagonia: historical summary](https://patbrit.org/eng/intro/pbhist.htm)) but it’s more historical, as I’m not aware of any further ties between Patagonia and the Falklands or England. (There might be some; it’s not like I _would_ be aware). ---
**Author:** ![Capn\_Carl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/838e76/32.png) [@Capn\_Carl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Capn_Carl)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2026, 5:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-malvinas-falklands-in-argentine-culture-and-politics/1031774/42 "2026-07-19T17:34:57Z")
Regarding the legality of the attack on the _Belgrano_: According to Wikipedia, the UK informed Argentina 9 days before the attack that their Exclusion Zone was null and void. Any Argentine naval vessel could be targeted. Also, the captain of the _Belgrano_ publicly recognized that the attack was a legal act of war. This myth just won’t die. ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2026, 6:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-malvinas-falklands-in-argentine-culture-and-politics/1031774/43 "2026-07-19T18:22:42Z")
> [@Capn\_Carl](#): > > Also, the captain of the _Belgrano_ publicly recognized that the attack was a legal act of war. > > This myth just won’t die. > **[ARA General Belgrano | Controversy over the sinking](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ARA_General_Belgrano#Controversy_over_the_sinking)** > > The legality of the sinking of General Belgrano has been disputed due to disagreement on the exact nature of the Maritime Exclusion Zone (MEZ) and whether General Belgrano had been returning to port at the time of the sinking. Through a message passed via the Swiss Embassy in Buenos Aires to the Argentine government nine days before the sinking, the UK made clear that it no longer considered the 200 mile exclusion zone as the limit of its military action. On 1 May 1982, Admiral Juan Lombardo orde... > In 2003, the ship’s captain Hector Bonzo confirmed that _General Belgrano_ had actually been manoeuvering, not “sailing away” from the exclusion zone.[[29]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ARA_General_Belgrano#cite_note-Guardian-31) Captain Bonzo stated that any suggestion that HMS _Conqueror_’s actions were a “betrayal” was utterly wrong; rather, the submarine carried out its duties according to the accepted rules of war.[[30]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ARA_General_Belgrano#cite_note-Middlebrook_2009_p116-32) In an interview two years before his death in 2009, he further stated that: “It was absolutely not a war crime. It was an act of war, lamentably legal.”[[31]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ARA_General_Belgrano#cite_note-Britain_was_right_to_sink_the_Belgrano-33) ---
**Author:** ![its\_the\_daddy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/bb73d2/32.png) [@its\_the\_daddy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/its_the_daddy)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2026, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-malvinas-falklands-in-argentine-culture-and-politics/1031774/44 "2026-07-19T18:53:08Z")
> [@Dr.Drake](#): > > Now, the Welsh are very much rooting for Argentina over England in the World Cup because of this connection. (This came up a LOT last week.) My younger sister lives in Wales, is married to a Welshman. She said (repeated) last week that they _always_ shout for whichever team is playing against England in any sporting competition (especially Rugby). Our brother - also English born - is married to a Norwegian (he’s dual nationality). My Norwegian nephews and nieces were also supporting Norway last week, of course, but they were much more diplomatic. They shouted _for_ England against Argentina. Incidentally, my nephew-in-law is dual Argentinian/Mexican, married to my Norwegian niece, but I don’t think he got much choice in who to support. We have interesting family reunions! ---
**Author:** ![Dr.Drake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/ad7895/32.png) [@Dr.Drake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dr.Drake)\ **Post date:** [July 19, 2026, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-malvinas-falklands-in-argentine-culture-and-politics/1031774/45 "2026-07-19T20:12:20Z")
That Wales roots against England frequently is true, but irrelevant to the thread. That’s UK-internal, and similar for Scotland etc. That Wales is both in the UK but maintains a cultural connection to part of Argentina due to a 150-year-old shared history is the relevant bit. My point in bringing it up was that the UK-Argentina friction over territory isn’t limited to the Falklands in the 19th & early 20th centuries. For Argentina’s first century of independence, it was still competing for territory with other colonial and post-colonial powers (e.g. Chile). I brought it up because most people either don’t know about Britain’s colonial presence on mainland South America, or else think it’s limited to British Guyana. ---
**Author:** ![SanVito](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sanvito/32/2805_2.png) [@SanVito](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SanVito)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2026, 10:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-malvinas-falklands-in-argentine-culture-and-politics/1031774/46 "2026-07-20T10:26:48Z")
> [@Dr.Drake](#): > > Now, the Welsh are very much rooting for Argentina over England in the World Cup because of this connection. (This came up a LOT last week.) The Welsh people I know, including my wife, her family, and friends just over the border (5 miles away) were actually supporting England in this WC, and certainly not Argentina. Now rugby is a completely different story… > [@Frodo](#): > > The point about Argentina’s protests making it harder to retrieve the islands instead of helping is interesting, I hadn’t seen it that way. Yes, it really gets our backs up and stiffens national resolve that Argentina can F-Off. We find it insulting when ‘our boys’ had to die to defend the islands from a ridiculous invasion. These days, most British people are rightly embarrassed by our colonial history and happy to hand back whatever lands to whoever wants them, but the Falklands War and - more importantly - Argentina’s persistent use of the football stage to bring it up has really hardened opinion around something we would have had no opinion about in 1981. ---
**Author:** ![OldGuy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/3bc359/32.png) [@OldGuy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OldGuy)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2026, 4:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-malvinas-falklands-in-argentine-culture-and-politics/1031774/47 "2026-07-20T16:02:57Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > There was a HUGE British base staring the United States in the face as it expanded westward; it was called “Canada”. The Americans thought about taking it for a long time, but then decided to be friends with the British instead. There were British forts in what became Oregon and Washington state as well. Vancouver Washington was originally Fort Vancouver, a British fort and headquarters of the Columbia Department. At one point Britain claimed the Columbia River as the border between US and British territories. The US claimed 54 degrees 40 minutes as the boundary. They compromised at teh 49th parallel (except Vancouver Island was all British). ---
**Author:** ![ricepad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b38774/32.png) [@ricepad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ricepad)\ **Post date:** [July 20, 2026, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-malvinas-falklands-in-argentine-culture-and-politics/1031774/48 "2026-07-20T16:21:47Z")
Thank you, @Frodo , for posting this. I have always gotten what is mainly the British side, and never heard the Argentine side. It’s long been my opinion that there are three sides to any dispute, but your explanation helped me see a different perspective. I have no dog in this fight, but can appreciate it from a distance much more fairly. ---
**Author:** ![JacobSwan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/a6a055/32.png) [@JacobSwan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JacobSwan)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2026, 1:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-malvinas-falklands-in-argentine-culture-and-politics/1031774/49 "2026-07-22T13:38:31Z")
> [@JoseB](#): > > take the Vulcan bombers out of commission. They had given up on in air refueling years before and when they came to plan the Black Buck mission they realised they would need to do it. One of the planes was missing a vital part that was eventually found being used as an ashtray in an RAF bar. ---
**Author:** ![Frodo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/frodo/32/302_2.png) [@Frodo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Frodo)\ **Post date:** [July 22, 2026, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-malvinas-falklands-in-argentine-culture-and-politics/1031774/50 "2026-07-22T14:29:44Z")
> [@Filbert](#): > > It’s interesting that you say in Argentina Milei is seen as not interested in the issue; since his election, the British news reports of him making claims about the islands That’s something interesting, he _had_ to make these assertions because his previous declarations were so ill received, but he’s not fooling anyone _here_ while having the opposite effect _there_ so, worst of both worlds for him. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [August 14, 2026, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-malvinas-falklands-in-argentine-culture-and-politics/1031774/51 "2026-08-14T01:47:49Z")
> [@DrDeth](#): > > In 2003, the ship’s captain Hector Bonzo confirmed that _General Belgrano_ had actually been manoeuvering, not “sailing away” from the exclusion zone.[[29]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ARA_General_Belgrano#cite_note-Guardian-31) Captain Bonzo stated that any suggestion that HMS _Conqueror_’s actions were a “betrayal” was utterly wrong; rather, the submarine carried out its duties according to the accepted rules of war.[[30]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ARA_General_Belgrano#cite_note-Middlebrook_2009_p116-32) In an interview two years before his death in 2009, he further stated that: “It was absolutely not a war crime. It was an act of war, lamentably legal.”[[31]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ARA_General_Belgrano#cite_note-Britain_was_right_to_sink_the_Belgrano-33) This was also the official position of the Argentine Navy. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-malvinas-falklands-in-argentine-culture-and-politics/1031774.md?page=2)