Is the Archipelago a Political Tool? The Role of the Falkland Islands Sovereignty Dispute in Argentine Policy During the Kirchner Era.

The dispute over sovereignty in the Falkland Islands (called Islas Malvinas in the Spanishspeaking world) between Argentina and Great Britain has lasted for nearly two hundred years. The archipelago has been a British territory since 1833, when the crew of HMS 'Clio' forcibly took over the islands, which had previously belonged to Argentina. The Argentine people have never accepted this loss and have since been trying to reclaim the territory, with no further effect. The aim of this paper is to analyse the role of the Falkland Islands dispute in Argentine domestic and foreign policy during the presidencies of Néstor Kirchner (2003-2007) and Cristina Fernández de Kirchner (2007-2015). The thesis of this paper is that the Falklands became a crucial factor in shaping Argentine policy during the Kirchner era, not only on the international level, but also within the country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]