Argentina Bars Bermuda-Flagged Ship
Argentine authorities stopped a cruise liner flying the Bermudian flag from docking in one of the country’s ports on Monday, the Reuter news agency reports today [Feb.27], further ratcheting up the tension in its ongoing spat with Britain over the Falklands.
Britain and Argentina fought a 10-week war over the Falkland Islands in 1982 after Argentina invaded the South Atlantic archipelago, which the Argentines call Las Malvinas.
The conflict claimed 900 lives. Tensions have risen before the 30th anniversary of the Falklands conflict this year and oil exploration by British companies off the islands has raised the stakes. Bermuda is an overseas territory of Britain, which is why the liner was stopped from docking in the southern port of Ushuaia, state news agency Telam said on Monday.
“The ship that was not allowed to dock in the port of the provincial capital is the ‘Star Princess’ [pictured], a luxury cruise liner with a capacity of 2,600 passengers,” Telam said, adding that the ship had docked there before the recent increase in diplomatic tensions.
“Star Princess” is owned by Princess Cruises, a British-American cruise line, based in Santa Clarita, California. Previously a subsidiary of P&O Princess Cruises, the company is now one of ten cruise ship brands operated by Carnival Corporation & plc and accounts for approximately 19 percent share of its revenue.
All 16 ships in the Princess Cruises fleet are flagged in Bermuda.
London has refused to start talks on sovereignty with Buenos Aires unless the 3,000 islanders want them.
Britain will share in a Falkland Islands windfall when oil starts flowing there later this decade. With taxes and royalties estimated at up to $167 billion, the potential prize may continue to inflame tensions with Argentina. Sea Lion, a field discovered in 2010, will generate $10.5 billion of tax and royalty revenues for the Falklands over its estimated 20-year life.
The Argentine government recently accused Britain of an “act of provocation and aggression” by sending Prince William there on a six-week tour of duty as an Royal Air Force search and rescue pilot.
It also accused Britain of “militarising” the South Atlantic with its decision to send the state-of-the art naval war ship HMS “Dauntless” to the area and earlier this month said it would appeal to the United Nations to negotiate the issue of sovereignty.
President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner has already banned ships which fly the Falklands flag from using the ports of Argentina and its South American allies and has also threatened to halt the weekly flight from Chile to Port Stanley, the Falklands capital’s main connection with the outside world, by banning it from flying through her country’s airspace.
Looke like Argentina is looking for another 10 week a$$ kicking.
“All 16 ships in the Princess Cruises fleet are flagged in Bermuda.”
How many of these 16 ships actually visit Bermuda? I may be missing something here, but perhaps in the budget speech the PLP should have considered, at minimum, one visit annually for any ship that is registered in Bermuda…
They’d just change their registry rather than have some dumb um um dictate to them.
@ WTF 10 week. The HMS Dauntless is down in Falklands. more like a 10 minute beat down!! Argies stand no chance.