Argentina and Britain Fight over the Falkland Islands

On 2 April 1982, Argentine amphibious forces landed on the Falkland Islands under Operation Rosario, initiating a ten-week conflict in the South Atlantic. The invasion quickly overcame a small garrison of Royal Marines, hydrographers, and local volunteers in Stanley. Argentine troops also seized the dependency of South Georgia the following day. Argentina's ruling military junta, led by General Leopoldo Galtieri and Admiral Jorge Anaya, sought to reclaim territories it regarded as national soil, hoping that patriotic enthusiasm would distract from domestic economic decline and civil opposition. The junta calculated that the United Kingdom would not retaliate with military force.

The British government under Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher rejected the seizure of a British territory whose sovereignty Argentina had contested since 1833. On 3 April, the United Nations Security Council adopted Resolution 502, demanding an immediate cessation of hostilities and the full withdrawal of Argentine forces. By 5 April, Britain had dispatched a naval task force to the region under the command of Admiral Sir John Fieldhouse. A special War Cabinet met almost daily in London to direct operations, while United States diplomatic efforts, led by Secretary of State Alexander Haig, failed to broker an interim settlement between the two sides.