How did the Falklands issue come about? Why did the British refuse to return it?

The Malvinas Islands, referred to as the "Falkland Islands", are called the Falkland Islands by the British. The island is located in the southwest Atlantic Ocean, about 500 kilometers off the coast of Argentina, and is considered part of Argentina's national territory. However, the British also claimed sovereignty over the Falklands and occupied them for a long time. In the 1980s, Argentina even went to war with Britain to recapture the Falklands. So far, the two countries are still at loggerheads over the Falklands issue. Many people can't help but ask, where did the Falklands issue come from, and why are the British unwilling to return it?

When it comes to Falklands, the situation is complicated. Ma Ben is an uninhabited archipelago in the southwestern Atlantic Ocean. In the 16th century, Europeans discovered the Falkland Islands. There has been a serious dispute between Argentina and Britain over the discoverer of the Falklands. The British believe that it was discovered by the British navigator Davis in 1592, while the Argentinians believe that it was discovered by the Portuguese Gomez of Magellan's expedition in 1520. Of course, the British statement seems to be more convincing, because the British found that the Falklands was written, while the Argentine statement has no definite evidence and lacks sufficient convincing. At the same time, the British also produced a more powerful evidence. The British John Strong also paid a six-day visit to the island in 1990, so the British believe that they are the real discoverers of the island. This is one of the main legal grounds for the British refusal to return the island.

But after the British discovered the Falklands, they did not take the Falklands, an island group far away from the mainland, seriously. The indifference of the British gave the French an opportunity. In 1764, the navigator Louis-Antoine de Bougainville established a settlement in the East Falkland Islands and de facto occupied the island. When the British learned that the French had occupied the Falklands, they quickly became restless. The following year, the British occupied West Falkland and began to immigrate there. In this way, the Falklands formed a situation of confrontation between Britain and France. The British protested to the French, claiming to have discovered the Falklands, and asked the French to abandon the Falklands. But the French have always been hostile to the British, so they don't care about the British at all. However, the French knew they were no match for the British, so they sold the East Falklands to Spain in 1767. After Spain acquired East Falkland, it quickly targeted West Falkland. Taking advantage of Britain's busy affairs in North America, the Spanish sent troops to occupy West Falkland Island in 1770 and expelled the local British immigrants. The British quickly protested to Spain, but because the British were unable to take care of the Falklands, and the Falklands were a loss-making commodity, the British only protested and did not use force. In the face of British protests, the Spanish made concessions. They returned British property on the island to British settlers and allowed the British to continue living. In this way, the Falklands fell into the hands of the Spanish.

Although Britain temporarily tolerated the situation in North America, its sovereignty over the Falklands was never relinquished. In 1806, Britain also sent troops to attack the Falklands, but failed. When Britain was preparing to fight again, the Argentine War of Independence began, Spain was driven out of Argentina, and it also withdrew from the Falklands. It is believed that the Falklands in Argentina are part of the Spanish-Argentine colonial alliance, so the sovereignty of the Falklands naturally belongs to Argentina. However, the British refused to admit it, believing that Spain had robbed Britain of the Falklands, and the British had never given up their sovereignty over the Falklands. If Spain withdraws, it will naturally be returned to Britain. The two countries are unwilling to give in to each other on the Falklands issue. However, Argentina is relatively close to the Falklands and attaches great importance to the Falklands, so it sent troops to the Falklands and appointed officials shortly after its independence. But not long after, Argentina detained an American fishing vessel for illegal fishing in the Falklands waters, angering the United States. The United States sent troops to destroy Argentine settlements on East Falkland Island, and the troops and officials on the island were driven away.

In 1833, the British came to the Falklands again, expelled the remaining Argentine officials from the island without firing a shot, and easily recaptured the Falklands. Although Argentina was angry, there was nothing he could do because the British Empire was the world's most powerful country at the time and he couldn't mess with it at all, so he had no choice but to protest. But the British don't care about Argentina at all. They not only stationed officials there, but also immigrated to the area and incorporated the Falklands into their territory.

In this way, the British have remained until now. After World War II, Britain was severely damaged by the war and lost its former glory. The Argentines achieved rapid development after the war and became the most powerful country in South America. The trade-off between the two countries gave Argentina confidence and the idea of ??regaining the Falklands. Argentina appealed to the United Nations on the Falklands issue, but because the issue was too complex and the United Kingdom was one of the five powers, the United Nations has been unable to resolve it.

In the 1970s and 1980s, Argentina experienced serious economic and political crises. In order to divert attention from the conflict, the Argentine military government decided to give it a try and launched the Falklands War. As a result, Argentina was defeated by the British in the Falklands War and was unable to recover. In fact, before the war, the British had the idea of ??returning the Falklands. At that time, there was a serious economic and political crisis in the UK, and the UK began to drastically cut spending. Not only has the naval establishment been reduced, but the cost and number of troops stationed on the Falklands have also been reduced. The British even planned to abandon the heavily burdened Falkland Islands. So before the Falklands War, the British had been making concessions to Argentina, but Argentina thought the British were weak, so they got excited and attacked the Falklands. The result outraged the British. Not only was Falklands not recaptured, but it was beaten to the point of bankruptcy. If Argentina is not impulsive, the Falklands issue is likely to be resolved peacefully. Now that the Falkland Islands have become part of the British territory, the islands are full of British people who do not want to leave the UK. Naturally, the British people will not easily give up the Falklands they won back with hundreds of millions of pounds. If Argentina wants to take back the Falklands, it probably can only hope for Scottish independence.