Which country colonized the Beagle Channel? Chile or Argentina?
Beagle Channel cartography since 1881
The region of the Beagle Channel, explored by Robert FitzRoy in the 1830s, was one of the last to be colonized by Chile and Argentina. The cold weather, the long distances from other inhabited regions, and the shortage of transport and subsistence, kept it far from the governmental task.
Beagle conflict
During the 1990s, under the presidency of Carlos Menem in Argentina and Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle in Chile, they resolved almost all of their disputes and both countries began to work together both economically and militarily.
Papal mediation in the Beagle conflict
On 2 April 1982 Argentina invaded the Falkland Islands. The Argentine plan included indeed the military occupation of the disputed islands at the Beagle channel after the invasion of the Falklands, as stated by Brigadier Basilio Lami Dozo, chief of the Argentine Air Force during the Falklands war, in an interview with the Argentine magazine Perfil: L.F. Galtieri:""[Chile] have to know that what we are doing now, because they will be the next in turn.". Also Óscar Camilión, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Argentina from 29 March 1981 to 11 December 1981, in his "Memorias Políticas", confirms the plan of Argentine military: ""The military planning was, with the Falklands in Argentine hand, to invade the disputed islands in the Beagle Channel. That was the determination of the [Argentine] navy…"". Pope John Paul II made an unscheduled visit to Buenos Aires on June 14, 1982
in an attempt to prevent further hostilities between Britain and Argentina.
Direct negotiations between Chile and Argentina in 1977–78
But in 1977, the conflict over the Beagle Channel had become the primary foreign policy imperative of both governments.
Beagle Channel
The Beagle Channel is about long and is about wide at its narrowest point. It extends from Nueva Island in the east to Darwin Sound and Cook Bay of the Pacific Ocean in the west. Some from its western end it divides into two branches, north and south of Gordon Island. The southwest branch between Hoste Island and Gordon Island enters Cook Bay. The northwest branch between Gordon Island and Isla Grande enters Darwin Sound connecting to the Pacific Ocean by the O'Brien Channel and the Ballenero Channel. The biggest settlement on the channel is Ushuaia in Argentina followed by Puerto Williams in Chile. These are two of the southernmost settlements of the world.
Beagle conflict
In 1982, Argentina still secretly considered Chile an enemy. Chile, perhaps suspecting an Argentine invasion, argued that it was not bound to support Argentina against the UK under the Inter-American Treaty of Reciprocal Assistance because that treaty was defensive in nature, while Argentina was the aggressor in this case and both Chile and Argentina deployed their respective militaries to the border.
Beagle Channel Arbitration
The territorial waters established by these coasts, according to international maritime law, established Chilean rights in the Atlantic Ocean.
Beagle Channel Arbitration
On 25 January 1978 Argentina repudiated the arbitration award. According to Argentina:
Beagle conflict
The conflict was resolved through papal mediation and since 1984 Argentina recognizes the islands as Chilean territory. The 1984 treaty also resolves several collateral issues of great importance, including navigation rights, sovereignty over other islands in the Fuegian Archipelago, delimitation of the Straits of Magellan, and maritime boundaries south to Cape Horn and beyond.
Beagle conflict
The Pope proposed in 1980 a solution that was accepted by Chile and rejected by Argentina.
Beagle Channel cartography since 1881
This reproduction of the "Map of the division of the Argentine territory into Military regions 1905" was included in the Military Bulletin of the Argentine Ministry of War, Year IV, vol. I, 1 May 1905, No. 140. The Argentine military regions are distinguished by different colours, all territories located south of the Beagle Channel as far as Cape Horn have been omitted and thus understood to be under Chilean sovereignty.
List of incidents during the Beagle conflict
On 21 May 1977, after the arbitral award, the Argentine Navy installed a lighthouse in the (inhabited) Barnevelt Island. It was immediately dismantled by the Chilean Navy.
Tierra del Fuego
The archipelago consists of a main island, Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego, often called simply Tierra del Fuego or Isla Grande, with an area of , and a group of smaller islands. The main island is split between two countries: , and , 61.43% of the total area, belongs to Chile while 38.57% of the total area, belongs to Argentina. The archipelago is divided by an east–west channel, the Beagle Channel, immediately south of the main island. The largest islands south of the Beagle Channel are Hoste and Navarino.
White people
The original arrival of Spaniards was the most radical change in demographics due to the arrival of Europeans in Chile, since there was never a period of massive immigration, as happened in neighboring nations such as Argentina and Uruguay. Facts about the amount of immigration do not coincide with certain national chauvinistic discourse, which claims that Chile, like Argentina or Uruguay, would be considered one of the "white" Latin American countries, in contrast to the racial mixture that prevails in the rest of the continent. However, it is undeniable that immigrants have played a major role in Chilean society. Between 1851 and 1924 Chile only received the 0.5% of the European immigration flow to Latin America, compared to the 46% received by Argentina, 33% by Brazil, 14% by Cuba, and 4% by Uruguay. This was because most of the migration occurred across the Atlantic before the construction of the Panama Canal. Europeans preferred to stay in countries closer to their homelands instead of taking the long trip through the Straits of Magellan or across the Andes. In 1907, European-born immigrants composed 2.4% of the Chilean population, which fell to 1.8% in 1920, and 1.5% in 1930.
Snipe incident
Twenty years later, in 1978, in order to avoid a repetition of the "fait accompli", Chile placed troops on Snipe and their other islands south of the Beagle Channel before the start of Operation Soberania, Argentina's planned invasion.
Chiloé Archipelago
As Chiloé had been a defensive stronghold during colonial times, the Republic of Chile used Chiloé as a starting point for its territorial expansion into the southern territories. The expedition to the Straits of Magellan, that founded Fuerte Bulnes in 1843, was assembled in Chiloé. In the 1850s Chiloé was again instrumental in the logistical support of the colonization of the Llanquihue Lake, where German settlers were given land. The last major portion of Patagonia to be incorporated into Chile, Aysén was also explored and settled from Chiloé. In the colonization process of Patagonia, Chilotes immigrants constituted a large part of the work force of the livestock enterprises that were established in Patagonia between 1890 and 1950.
Beagle Channel cartography since 1881
A soviet map of the Beagle Channel used the Argentine toponyme "Moat Channel" in 1967. See Sowjet map 1967.
List of incidents during the Beagle conflict
On 29 November 1967 the Chilean Patrol Boat "Quidora" (PTF-82) was shelled by the Argentine Navy from Ushuaia.
Treaty of Peace and Friendship of 1984 between Chile and Argentina
The treaty recognizes the Boundary Treaty of 1881 between Chile and Argentina and its "«…supplementary and declaratory instruments…»" as the unshakeable foundation of relations between Chile and Argentina and defines the border "«…from the end of the existing boundary in the Beagle Channel, i.e., the point fixed by the coordinates 55°07.3' South latitude and 66°25.0' West longitude…»" (Bold by Wikipedia). That is, Argentina recognizes the borderline determined by the Beagle Channel Arbitration in 1977 (Report and Decision of the Court of Arbitration), which it had earlier rejected. Hence, there is no mention of Picton, Nueva, Lennox and other islands. The Treaty calls its content a "Transaction"
Argentina–Chile relations
A series of coastal and high-seas naval battles between Spain and its former colonies of Peru and Chile occurred between 1864 and 1866. These actions began with Spain's seizure of the guano-rich Chincha Islands, part of a strategy by Isabel II of Spain to reassert her country's lost influence in Spain's former South American empire. These actions prompted an alliance between Ecuador, Bolivia, Peru and Chile against Spain. As a result, all Pacific coast ports of South America situated south of Colombia were closed to the Spanish fleet. Argentina, however, refused to join the alliance and maintained amicable relations with Spain and delivered coal to the Spanish fleet.
Fjords and channels of Chile
from islote Anxious - Canal Magdalena - Canal Cockburn - Paso Brecknock or Canal Ocasión - Canal Unión - Paso Occidental - Paso Norte - Canal Ballenero- Canal O'Brien - Paso Timbales - Brazo noroeste del Canal Beagle - Canal Beagle - Puerto Williams (and back).(Chilean ships can use Paso Aguirre)
Minas Geraes-class battleship
Brazil's navy fell into obsolescence after an 1889 revolution, which deposed Emperor Dom Pedro II, and an 1893 civil war. Meanwhile, an Argentine–Chilean dispute over the boundary of Patagonia and control of the Beagle Channel kindled a naval arms race between the two beginning in the late 1880s and lasting until 1902. Restrictions were placed on the navies of both countries and major vessels under construction in both navies were sold as part of the British-mediated three pacts which ended the dispute, but both countries retained the numerous vessels built in the interim. As such, by the turn of the 20th century the Brazilian Navy lagged far behind the Chilean and Argentine navies in quality and total tonnage, despite Brazil having nearly three times the population of Argentina and almost five times the population of Chile.
Chilean Navy
After incidents with Chile in 1872, 1877 and 1878 Argentina had decided that a brownwater navy, even if modern, was not enough to back up its ambitions in Patagonia and the South Atlantic. Both countries were distracted in the next few years by Argentina's internal military operations against natives and Chile's War of the Pacific against Bolivia and Peru, but by 1890 a full-fledged naval arms race was underway between the two. The Boundary treaty of 1881 between Chile and Argentina had been a major success in laying the groundwork for nearly all of Chile's and Argentina's of shared borders, but the drawing a boundaries in the largely unexplored inland Patagonia soon became a major source of territorial disputes. Over the 1880s and 1890s Chile and Argentina engaged in an arms race fueled by nationalistic rhetoric and tax income from their blooming economies. Both countries signed a treaty in 1902 to end the arms race. However, in 1904 Brazil ordered two dreadnoughts to be built by the United Kingdom. In response, Argentina ordered two dreadnoughts with an option for a third from the United States. They also ordered twelve destroyers from three nations in Europe. With its major rival acquiring so many modern vessels, Chile was forced to respond, though this was delayed by a financial depression brought on by a major earthquake and a drastic fall in the nitrate market in 1906 and 1907, respectively.
Beagle Channel cartography since 1881
In the southern region the international boundary is shown traced through the centre of the Beagle channel, continuing beyond the eastern mouth of the Channel, indicating Picton, Nueva and Lennox Islands and all other islands and islets extending southward as far as Cape Horn as being under Chilean sovereignty
Magdalena Channel
Magdalena Channel () is a Chilean channel joining the Strait of Magellan with the Cockburn Channel and is part of a major navigation route which ultimately connects with the Beagle Channel. It separates Capitán Aracena Island from the westernmost portion of Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego, and crosses Alberto de Agostini National Park. It is flanked by mountains, the chief of which is Monte Sarmiento. Like the Abra Channel and the Bárbara Channel farther west, it joins the western part of the Strait of Magellan directly to the Pacific Ocean.
Beagle Channel Arbitration
The procedure had four phases:Chile handed over to the Court 14 volumes and 213 maps, and Argentina 12 volumes and 195 maps.
Argentina–Chile relations
In 1978 Direct negotiations between Chile and Argentina in 1977-78 failed and relations became extremely tense. Argentina sent troops to the border in Patagonia and in Chile large areas were mined. On 22 December, Argentina started Operation Soberanía in order to invade the islands and continental Chile, but after a few hours stopped the operation when the Pope John Paul II sent a personal message to both presidents urging a peaceful solution. Both countries agreed that the Pope would mediate the dispute through the offices of Cardinal Antonio Samoré his special envoy (See Papal mediation in the Beagle conflict).
List of incidents during the Beagle conflict
On 3 February 1968 the "USCGC Southwind" in emergency conditions headed to Ushuaia via the eastern entrance of the Beagle Channel without notification nor permission of the Chilean Government. The Chileans protested.
Beagle conflict
The conflict began in 1904 with the first official Argentine claims over the islands that had always been under Chilean control. The conflict passed through several phases: since 1881 they were claimed Chilean islands, beginning in 1904 they were disputed islands, followed later by direct negotiations, submission to a binding international tribunal, further direct negotiations, brinkmanship and settlement.
Beagle Channel Arbitration
Whaits island, the islets called Snipe, Eugenia, Solitario, Hermanos, Gardiner and Reparo, and the bank known as Herradura were awarded to Chile. All of these lie near the southern bank of the Beagle Channel.
Beagle Channel cartography since 1881
In the official Argentine map the geographic nomenclature "OCÉANO ATLÁNTICO SUR" (South Atlantic Ocean) appears inserted to the south of Hoste Island and in the western region of Wollaston and Hermite Islands, in other words more than one degree longitude west of Cape Horn, thus contradicting the (1978) Argentine thesis concerning the ocean toponymy in the region of the extreme south of America, that the Cape Horn was the border between the Pacific and Atlantic Ocean. The reason could be that in 1938 the Argentine delegation to the Hydrographic Conference in Oslo tried to define the meridian 68° 43'W (through the Chilean Diego Ramírez Islands) as limit between the Pacific and Atlantic oceans.
During the Proceso de Reorganización Nacional (1976–1983) and based on concepts of territorial nationalism and geopolitics Argentine geographs sustained the possession of the islands as a "vital issue" and called on to a "march to the south" in order to follow some kind of Argentine "Manifest Destiny":
Beagle Channel
The Beagle Channel develops between several islands; to the north lies Argentine-Chilean Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego, to the south Hoste, Navarino, and Picton and Nueva, which were claimed by Argentina until 1984. The latter two lie at the bi-national eastern entrance to the channel while the western entrance is wholly inside Chile. The western entrance of Beagle Channel is divided by Gordon Island into two channels. Some minor islands exist inside the channel among them Snipe Islet and Gable Island. Except for eastern Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego and Gable Island all islands mentioned here belong to Chile.
ARA Moreno
"Moreno"s genesis can be traced to the numerous naval arms races between Chile and Argentina, which in turn were spawned by territorial disputes over their mutual borders in Patagonia and Puna de Atacama along with control of the Beagle Channel. Naval races flared up in the 1890s and in 1902; the latter was eventually settled via British mediation. Provisions in the dispute-ending treaty imposed restrictions on both countries' navies. The United Kingdom's Royal Navy bought the two "Constitución"-class pre-dreadnought battleships that were being built for Chile, and Argentina sold its two "Rivadavia"-class armored cruisers under construction in Italy to Japan.
Operation Algeciras
Soon, due to his cooperation and expertise, he managed to get himself appointed to carry out a similar submarine attack against a Chilean ship because tensions between Chile and Argentina were high due to the Beagle Channel dispute. This attack was not carried out in the end because the disagreement between Chile and Argentina was finally resolved peacefully. Nicoletti was then sent to Venezuela as a spy but he was discovered and had to return to Argentina. Shortly after he settled in Miami, but when he heard of the Argentine invasion of the Falkland Islands he immediately got in touch with the Argentinian government in case his services were needed and he was instructed to return to Buenos Aires.
ARA Rivadavia
"Rivadavia"s genesis can be traced to the naval arms races between Chile and Argentina which were spawned by territorial disputes over their mutual borders in Patagonia and Puna de Atacama, along with control of the Beagle Channel. These arms races flared up in the 1890s and again in 1902; the latter was eventually stopped through British mediation. Provisions in the dispute-ending treaty imposed restrictions on both countries' navies. The United Kingdom's Royal Navy bought the two "Constitución"-class pre-dreadnought battleships that were being built for Chile, and Argentina sold its two "Rivadavia"-class armored cruisers under construction in Italy to Japan.
List of incidents during the Beagle conflict
On 8 June 1978 Chile sent a diplomatic objection to Argentine activities off the eastern mouth of the Magellan Strait and reserving rights there. In September 1980 a offshore oil rig authorized by Argentina was warned by a Chilean warship and then by military helicopter to abandon the area. Also an Argentine military aircraft threatened a Chilean warship proceeding toward the Strait of Magellan from the Falkland Islands.
Beagle Channel Arbitration
During the first fortnight of March 1976, the Court, accompanied by the Registrar and Liaison Officers from both sides, visited the Beagle Channel region, and inspected the islands and waterways concerned, first on the Chilean Naval Transport Vessel ""Aquiles"", and then on the Argentine Naval Transport Vessel ""ARA Bahia Aguirre"".
Events leading to the Falklands War
The Argentine government planned to seize the disputed Beagle Channel islands after the occupation of the Falklands. Basilio Lami Dozo disclosed that Leopoldo Galtieri announced to him that ""[Chile] have to know that what we are doing now, because they will be the next in turn." Also Óscar Camilión, the last Argentine Foreign Minister before the war (29. March 1981 to 11. December 1981) stated that ""The military planning was, after the solution of the Falklands case, to invade the disputed islands in the Beagle. That was the determination of the Argentine Navy""
Beagle conflict
Until 1887 there was no doubt in Argentina and Chile that the islands Picton, Nueva and Lennox belonged to Chile:
In 1904 the Argentine government solicited Chile to define jointly which was the deepest arm of the Beagle channel in the zone in order to find the demarcation of the border. On the basis of the international cartography of the zone, the descriptions of the discoverer of the channel, and the discourse of the signatories of the 1881 Treaty, Chile initially did not attach importance to the note.
Argentina–Holy See relations
Vatican officials, including Pope John Paul II and Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Agostino Casaroli acted as mediators to help resolve Argentina's dispute with Chile over the Beagle Channel. After the two countries almost went to war over the area in 1978, John Paul II became interested in resolving the dispute, which led to discussions between Chile and Argentina being mediated by the Vatican, and Argentine Foreign Minister Dante Caputo and Chilean Foreign Minister Jaime Del Valle issuing a joint statement of peace and friendship with the intent of developing a final treaty to resolve sovereignty in the channel.
Aftermath of the Falklands War
Regarding the attitude of the Latin American governments, K.J. Holsti presents another sight of the South American dilemma: "While South American governments (except Chile) publicly supported Argentina in its conflict with Great Britain, in private many governments were pleased with the outcome of the war. Argentina's bellicosity against Chile over the Beagle Channel problem ... [its] foreign intervention ([in] Bolivia and Nicaragua) ... and [its] propounded geopolitical doctrines that were seen in other countries as threatening to them". So, according to David R. Mares, "Brazilian military analysts worried about the problems of having a successful and belligerent Argentina as neighbour".
Beagle Channel cartography since 1881
In the course of time became noticeable in Argentina a position that worked continuously towards a new interpretation of the Boundary Treaty. For example, in 1885 appeared a map of Mariano Paz Soldán that continued the perpendicular in the Tierra del Fuego Island forth to the Antarctic, "«a fanciful line unrelated to the Treaty basis of division»" as stated by the Court of Arbitration. In 1891, the Argentine Government created an "International Boundaries Office" at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and in 1893 issued other decree providing that works on national geography already published should not be considered as officially approved unless accompanied by a "special statement" from the Department of Foreign Affairs.
Beagle conflict
There was a controversy about the east end of the Straits of Magellan. Both countries agreed about the boundary line, but not about the end of the Straits. The Chilean view was that the Straits ended at the boundary line and eastward continued the Atlantic Ocean and therefore Chile had a "beach" at (and its projection over) the Atlantic Ocean and it enjoyed sole control of the Straits themselves. The Argentine view was that the Straits continued eastward of the border and that the east end of the Straits of Magellan belonged to Argentina. Under this view, it was coproprietor with the right to co-regulate the navigation through the Straits and Chile had no border with the Atlantic Ocean.
Treaty of Peace and Friendship of 1984 between Chile and Argentina
The treaty ended the Beagle conflict and was the result of long standing negotiations between Chile, Argentina and the Vatican as mediator. The outcome of the Falklands war made the treaty possible. When consulted in a non-binding referendum on resolving the conflict by then President Raul Alfonsin, 82% of Argentine population voted in favor of signing the treaty.
Estanislao Zeballos
By 1905 Zeballos was again involved in diplomatic affairs after publishing an article entitled "The incident of the border with Chile and the Nueva and Picton Islands", referring to the sovereignty dispute over the Beagle Channel.
Argentina–Chile relations
This important treaty "()" was an agreement signed in 1984 between Argentina and Chile establishing friendly relations between the two countries. Particularly, the treaty defines the border delineation and freedom of navigation in the Strait of Magellan and gives possession of the Picton, Lennox and Nueva islands and sea located south of Tierra del Fuego to Chile, but the most part of the Exclusive Economic Zone eastwards of the Cape Horn-Meridian to Argentina. After that, other border disputes were resolved by peaceful means.
Beagle conflict
Tensions between Argentina and Chile did not subside until the democratic government of Raúl Alfonsín took office in Argentina in December 1983. Still isolated diplomatically due to the War, the Alfonsín administration made great efforts to stabilise the border situation. Without the support of the opposition, Alfonsín called for non-binding referendum on 25 November 1984, which produced a result of 82.6% in favour of the second papal proposal. The voting was close only in the territory of Tierra del Fuego, which included the Argentine sector of the disputed Beagle Channel and many military personnel. Even there the vote was narrowly in favour of the treaty. On 29 November 1984 Argentina and Chile signed a protocol of agreement to a treaty at Vatican City giving the islands to Chile but maritime rights to Argentina.
USCGC Southwind (WAGB-280)
She deployed to the Arctic in 1967, 1969, 1970, 1971, 1972 and 1973, as well as to the Antarctic in December 1967, December 1968 and January 1972. In 1968 she was involved in a diplomatic incident between Chile and Argentine about navigation rights in the Beagle channel.
Beagle Channel Arbitration
The Argentine rejection led both countries to the verge of war. On 22 December 1978 Argentina started military action to invade the islands. Only last minute papal mediation prevented the outbreak of armed conflict. The award was a defeat for Argentine foreign policy, and initiated an uncoupling from the international community, which lead Argentina three years later into the Falklands war.
United States intervention in Chile
Chile is a country in the southern South America. It borders the countries of Peru, Bolivia and Argentina, and is bordered by the Pacific Ocean. Chile became an independent state in 1810. United States intervention in Chilean politics started during the War of Chilean Independence. The influence of the United States of America in both the economic and the political arenas of Chile has gradually increased over the two centuries since, and continues to be significant.
Beagle Channel Arbitration
The award was later fully recognized by Argentina in the Peace and Friendship Treaty of 1984.
Beagle Channel cartography since 1881
After the discovery of gold in Tierra del Fuego the Romanian adventurer Julio Popper gave a speech at the ""Instituto Geográfico Argentino"" (predecessor of Instituto Geográfico Militar) about a change of course of the Beagle channel. He allegued that the channel didn't reach the Cape San Pío but at the ""Punta Navarro"" flows to the south through the Navarino and Picton islands. 1899 ordered the Argentine navy the ship ARA Almirante Brown (1880) under the command of Captain Juan P. Saenz Valiente on a hydrographic survey of the Beagle channel. The Argentine survey corroborated the Argentine thesis about the change of the Beagle and therefore the institut published 1901 new charts of the zone with a new Toponymy. They expanded the Moat-Bay ("Bahía Moat"), located at the shore of the Tierra del Fuego, opposite to the Picton island, to a (new) Moat channel. The new channel reached from Punta Navarro to Cabo San Pío. Consequently, the Picton, Nueva and Lennox islands became Terra Nullius, because the treaty of 1881 at this zone doesn't mention other islands than "south of the Beagle channel". The toponymy was disclosed to the United Kingdom and to the United States of America (the United States Hydrographic Office used the Argentine name, "Moat Channel" in "South America Pilot (1916)" in p. 246). Chile, the immediate neighbour was not informed and was advised of the new names only 1904 through new charts of the zone edited by the US. Segundo R. Storni, then Leutnant later (1943) Foreign Ministers of Argentina legitimated the modifications:
Beagle Channel cartography since 1881
Other maps of Paz Soldán show the disputed islands as Chilean Territories:
Beagle conflict
On 25 January 1978 Argentina rejected the ruling, and attempted via military force to challenge the Chilean commitment to defend the territory, and to coerce Chile into negotiating a division of the islands that would produce a boundary consistent with Argentine claims.
Treaty of Peace and Friendship of 1984 between Chile and Argentina
Vessels of all nations in traffic between the Straits of Magellan and Argentine ports in the Beagle Channel, and vice versa, enjoy navigation facilities exclusively along the following route through Chilean internal waters: Magdalena Channel, Canal Cockburn, Paso Brecknock or Canal Occasion, Canal Ballenero, Canal O'Brien, Paso Timbales, northwest arm of the Beagle Channel and the Beagle Channel as far as the meridian 68°36'38.5" West longitude and vice versa. The passage shall be navigated with a Chilean pilot and the Chilean Authority shall be informed at least 48 hours in advance of the date on which the vessel will begin passage.
Beagle Channel cartography since 1881
The new name didn't prevail and disappeared into oblivion. The Treaty of Peace and Friendship of 1984 between Chile and Argentina mention (only) the Beagle channel.
List of incidents during the Beagle conflict
In July 1967 the master of Panamanian ship "Ballenita" was fined in Chile after he accepted an Argentine pilot for the route to Ushuaia. As result, Chilean pilots have to board ships bound to the Beagle Channel in Montevideo and no longer in Buenos Aires.
Boundary Treaty of 1881 between Chile and Argentina
Argentina declared its independence in 1816 and Chile did the same in 1818. Once the Spaniards had been expelled, relations between the two nations soured primarily due to a border dispute: both claimed to have inherited overlapping parts of Patagonia.
Beagle Channel Arbitration
Chile accepted the judgement immediately and enacted it into its domestic law on 14 June 1977 (decree n°416 over the base lines).
List of incidents during the Beagle conflict
On 19 October 1984, as the Chilean and Argentine delegations signed the first agreement to the Treaty of Peace and Friendship of 1984 between Chile and Argentina, the Argentine artillery units fired eight rounds on the Chilean lighthouse "Gusanos" near Puerto Williams on the south shore of the Beagle Channel.
Beagle conflict
Direct negotiations between Chile and Argentina began after the announcement of the binding arbitration ruling, on 2 May 1977, and ended with the Act of Montevideo, Uruguay, on 9 January 1979, where both countries accepted papal mediation after Argentina aborted Operation Soberanía.
Papal mediation in the Beagle conflict
The Treaty of Peace and Friendship of 1984 between Chile and Argentina went a long way before enacted:
Chacao Channel
The Chacao Channel (Spanish: "Canal de Chacao") is located in Los Lagos Region, Chile and separates Chiloé Island from mainland Chile. The channel was created during the Quaternary glaciations by successive glaciers that flowed down from the Andes to the coast. The construction of a bridge connecting the island with the continent was discussed at government level for some time, but during the first government of Michelle Bachelet (2006–2010) it was turned down due to its high cost in comparison with other proposals that could be done to benefit islanders. Later, it was reactivated during Sebastián Piñera government, and finally auctioned
Cardenal Antonio Samoré Pass
Since 1974 there is a treaty that guarantee the transport of Chilean goods from the Chilean X Los Lagos Region to the XII Magallanes and Antártica Chilena Region over the Paso Samoré through the Argentinian Patagonia.
It is named after Cardinal Antonio Samorè, who mediated in the Beagle conflict between Chile and Argentina from 1978 to 1983. Operation Soberanía, the Argentine invasion plan, considered an offensive of the Third Army Corps under command of Luciano Benjamín Menéndez through Samoré Pass to seize Los Lagos Region.
GADA 601
A dispute over the islands of the Beagle Channel prompted a conflict with Chile in 1978. On 12 December, the bulk of the GADA was deployed in northern Patagonia.
The "Grupo de Artillería de Defensa Aérea Mixto 602", in charge of the Tiger Cat missiles was moved by railway to the town of Río Colorado, close to the river of the same name, in Río Negro province. Meanwhile, the remainder of the force continued the trip further west, to the city of Zapala, in Neuquen province. The troops then marched by route to the buildup area near Plaza Huincul.
The group established three outposts along the rivers Colorado and Limay in order to provide AAA defence to key bridges.
After a diplomatic breakthrough achieved by the Vatican envoy, Cardinal Antonio Samoré, the GADA came back to Mar del Plata on 30 January.
Argentina–Chile relations
In 1958 the Argentine Navy shelled a Chilean lighthouse and disembarked infantry in the uninhabitable islet Snipe, at the east entrance of the Beagle Channel.
Beagle Channel cartography since 1881
Argentine scientists Carlos Escudé and Andrés Cisneros in "Historia general de las relaciones exteriores de la República Argentina" give a résumé of the Boundary Treaty of 1881:
Beagle Channel Arbitration
On 2 May 1977 the court ruled that the islands belonged to Chile (see the Report and decision of the Court of Arbitration).
On 25 January 1978 Argentina repudiated the arbitration decision and on 22 December 1978 started (and a few hours later aborted) military action to invade both those islands and continental Chile.
List of incidents during the Beagle conflict
In 1958 the Argentine Navy shelled a Chilean lighthouse in the (uninhabited) Snipe islet and occupied the island. Both ambassadors were recalled, the Chilean Navy was sent to the zone and the Argentine Marines were pulled back from the island. It was the most serious incident that occurred in the zone.
Beagle Channel cartography since 1881
There was no agreement about the sovereignty over Patagonia and archipelago of Tierra del Fuego before the Boundary treaty of 1881 between Chile and Argentina. While Chile and Argentina claimed territories on both side of the 1984 defined border as own territories, the US and the European powers considered the land and islands often as Res nullius, although the Chilean settlement, and later city, of Punta Arenas at the Strait of Magellan existed since 1843.
Beagle Channel cartography since 1881
Partial reproduction of the first Argentine map showing the boundaries laid down in the Boundary Treaty of 23 July 1881, appeared in "La Ilustracion Argentina" issue of 10 November 1881 in Buenos Aires. The copy reproduced here is one handed to the British Minister Plenipontentiary in Buenos Aires by Dr. Bernardo de Irigoyen, Argentine Minister of Foreign Affairs who negotiated and signed the Boundary Treaty. The original is located in the official British Archives. The British Minister sent it to his Government with the comment that the dark shaded area ""comprising the Strait of Magellan, half of Tierra del Fuego and all the southern islands, represent was actually has been ceded to Chile by the recent Treaty."" (under Irigoyen map)
List of incidents during the Beagle conflict
The lucrative centolla fishery around Tierra del Fuego led to an incident in August 1967 when the Argentine schooner ' was found fishing from Gable Island and had to be ordered by a Chilean Patrol Boat ' to retrieve her nets and leave the zone escorted out of Chilean waters.
Tierra del Fuego National Park
The Beagle Channel or strait in Tierra del Fuego National Park is named after the British ship HMS "Beagle", which sailed with the naturalist Charles Darwin aboard in 1833–34. The channel separates islands of the Tierra del Fuego Archipelago, in extreme southern South America. It separates Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego from the islands of Nueva, Picton, Navarino, Hoste, Londonderry, Stewart, and other smaller islands to the south. It is oriented in an east-west direction, runs for a length of . Its width varies from . The biggest settlement on the channel is Ushuaia in Argentina followed by Puerto Williams in Chile, two of the southernmost settlements in the world. Ancient middens where Yaghan tribes lived are seen on the beaches around the Beagle Channel.
Chile
The Chilean Government has diplomatic relations with most countries. It settled all its territorial disputes with Argentina during the 1990s except for part of the border at Southern Patagonian Ice Field. Chile and Bolivia severed diplomatic ties in 1978 over Bolivia's desire to regain sovereign access to the Pacific Ocean it lost to Chile in 1879–83 War of the Pacific. The two countries maintain consular relations and are represented at the Consul General level.
Beagle Channel Arbitration
Chile kept in mind the Argentine breach of the arbitration agreement.
Beagle Channel cartography since 1881
This official map of Chile, partially reproduced here, "«was drawn up on the orders of the Chilean Government for use in primary schools in the Republic and with a view to the most recent data»" by Alejandro Bertrand in 1884. The author, an engineer, was member of the Boundary Commissions charged with marking out the Chilean-Argentine Frontier. At the time the map was approved by the Chilean Hydrographic Office. On the map all the islands south of the Beagle Channel as far as Cape Hoorn are shown as being under Chilean sovereignty. All Chilean maps have shown this border line since 1881.
Beagle Channel cartography since 1881
4 The Pelliza map was published 1888 and presented to the Court by Argentina as the first official Argentine map that represented the border line according to the 1881 Treaty. There were several slight different versions of this map, by some ones the border line runs over the north shore of the channel and by others on the south shore of the channel. The Court refused this maps with following words: "«This result [border line], even if not absolutely underivable from any possible interpretation of the Treaty, is so eccentric that it can hardly be taken seriously»".
Papal mediation in the Beagle conflict
On December 12, 1980, the Pope received both delegations and communicated to them his proposal for resolving the controversy, the terms of which had been developed entirely in secret and should be kept secret in order to avoid debilitating public debate that might diminish confidence in the proceedings and limit the freedom of action of both governments. But on 22 August 1981 the Argentine newspaper La Nación published the terms of the proposal. Chile would retain all of the islands and Argentina would be entitled to maintain certain limited facilities (common Radar and Weather stations) on some islands and would receive important navigation rights. Most important, however, was the creation of an ocean area known as the Sea of Peace. In this area, extending to the east and southeast from the disputed chain of islands, Chilean territorial waters would be limited to a narrow territorial sea, in which it would be obliged to share with Argentina equal participation in resource exploitation, scientific investigation, and environmental management. Beyond the Chilean territorial waters would be a much broader band of ocean subject to Argentine jurisdiction, but also subject to the same sharing provisions that applied in Chilean waters.
Aguirre Passage
Aguirre Passage (), also variously known as Pasaje Marinero, Canal Aguirre Cerda or Aguirre Channel, is a marine channel between Lemaire Island and Danco Coast, permitting northern access to Paradise Harbor. The feature was navigated by the ship "Belgica" of the Belgian Antarctic Expedition, 1897–99, and was known to Norwegian whalers in the area from 1913. Chilean Antarctic Expeditions operated a science station on Waterboat Point at Aguirre Passage from 1951–73. Named by the Chilean Antarctic Expedition, 1950–51, after Don Pedro Aguirre Cerda, President of Chile, 1938–41.
Beagle Channel Arbitration
On 22 July 1971 Salvador Allende and Alejandro Lanusse, the Presidents of Chile and Argentina, signed an arbitration agreement (the Arbitration Agreement of 1971). This agreement related to their dispute over the territorial and maritime boundaries between them, and in particular the title to the Picton, Nueva and Lennox islands near the extreme end of the American continent, which was submitted to binding arbitration under the auspices of the United Kingdom government.
Snipe incident
The Snipe incident was a military incident that took place between Chile and Argentina during 1958 as a result of a disputed border line in the Beagle Channel.
Beagle conflict
On 14 June 1977, the Chilean Government issued the decree n°416 over the baselines (See Chilean Baselines Map). The decree had two main implications for the controversy. First, it extended the range from which Chile might attempt to project its 12-miles territorial sea and 200-mile Exclusive Economic Zone along a continued line from Picton, Nueva, and Lennox Islands as far south as Cape Horn, thus greatly increasing its potential maritime jurisdiction to the east and southeast. Second, it effectively converted all waters enclosed by the baselines into Chilean internal waters where navigational rights for Argentina would exist only through explicit agreements with Chile. The Argentine port of Ushuaia, located on the north shore of the east Beagle Channel, had no direct free way to the Pacific Ocean through Argentine waters. Argentina has so far considered its unfettered use of the waters surrounding the Fuegian Archipelago to be a matter of critical importance for its commercial and military navigation.
Beagle conflict
A number of prominent public officials in Chile still point to past Argentine treaty repudiations when referring to relations between the two neighbours.
Military dictatorship of Chile (1973–1990)
Chile was on the brink of being invaded by Argentina,(also ruled by a military government) as the Argentina Junta started the Operation Soberania on 22 December 1978 because of the strategic Picton, Lennox and Nueva islands at the southern tip of South America on the Beagle Canal. A full-scale war was prevented only by the call off of the operation by Argentina due to military and political reasons. But the relations remained tense as Argentina invaded the Falklands (Operation Rosario). Chile along with Colombia, were the only countries in South America to criticize the use of force by Argentina in its war with the U.K. over the Falkland Islands. Chile actually helped the United Kingdom during the war. The two countries (Chile and Argentina) finally agreed to papal mediation over the Beagle canal that finally ended in the Treaty of Peace and Friendship of 1984 between Chile and Argentina ("Tratado de Paz y Amistad"). Chilean sovereignty over the islands and Argentinian east of the surrounding sea is now undisputed.
Beagle Channel cartography since 1881
Partial reproduction of the "Nuevo Mapa de la República Argentina", 1914, prepared by Pablo Ludwig. The complete map is under . In the map Picton and Nueva appear under Argentine, Lennox under Chilean sovereignty.
Beagle Channel Arbitration
It involved the border running approximately along the center of the Channel, and awarded both Chile and Argentina sovereignty over navigable waters in the Channel:
Papal mediation in the Beagle conflict
On January 21, 1982 Argentina announced the withdrawal from the 1972 bilateral treaty providing for recourse to the International Court of Justice in case of disputes. In Argentina the judicial process had become an anathema, particularly in view of the adverse 1977 arbitration award. Chile reserved the right to go to the ICJ unilaterally before the treaty ended on 27 December 1982.
Faustino Sainz Muñoz
He traveled to Latin America in 1978, where he accompanied Antonio Cardinal Samoré in successfully averting war between Chile and Argentina over the Beagle conflict. Sainz, who accompanied Pope John Paul on his visit to his native Poland in June 1979, describes the crowd's applause during the Pope's homily at a Mass on Victory Square in Warsaw as “an image that [he] cannot forget...it was the beginning of the end of Communism in Poland”.
Boundary Treaty of 1881 between Chile and Argentina
According to the Argentine view of the treaty, called the Magellan/Atlantic transfer, the general agreement was that Argentina was an Atlantic country, and Chile was a Pacific one. Chile has never accepted that and the Chilean view was confirmed by the Court of Arbitration in the Beagle dispute (§31 ):
Colonial Chile
Direct trade with Spain over the Straits of Magellan and Buenos Aires begun first in the 18th century constituting primarily an export route for gold, silver and copper from Chilean mining. By the same time Spains trade monopoly with its colonies was successively weakened by smugglers from England, France and United States.
Tierra del Fuego
During the 1940s Chile and Argentina formulated their Antarctic claims. The governments realized the key role of Tierra del Fuego's geographical proximity in backing their claims as well as in supplying their Antarctic bases. In the 1950s, the Chilean military founded Puerto Williams to counter Ushuaia's monopoly as the only settlement in the Beagle Channel, a zone where Argentina disputed the 1881 borders.
Argentina–Chile relations
The Argentine government planned to seize the disputed Beagle Channel islands after the occupation of the Falkland Islands. Basilio Lami Dozo former Chief of the Argentine Air Force during the Falklands war disclosed that Leopoldo Galtieri told him that:
Óscar Camilión, the last Argentine Foreign Minister before the war (29 March 1981 to 11 December 1981) has stated that:
These preparations were public. On 2 June 1982 the newspaper "La Prensa" published an article by Manfred Schönfeld explaining what would follow Argentina's expected victory in the Falkland Islands:
Argentine General Osiris Villegas demanded (in April 1982) after the successful Argentine landing in the Falklands that his government stop negotiations with Chile and seize the islands south of the Beagle. In his book "La propuesta pontificia y el espacio nacional comprometido", (p. 2), he asked:
This intention was probably known to the Chilean government, as the Chileans provided the United Kingdom with 'limited, but significant information' during the conflict. The "Chilean Connection" is described in detail by Sir Lawrence Freedman in his book "The Official History of the Falklands Campaign".
Beagle Channel Arbitration
The court awarded navigable waters on the north bank of the eastern part of the Channel to Argentina, but otherwise it met all Chilean claims. Although the arbitration concerned only small islands, the direction of the new demarcation of the frontier would under international maritime law give Chile significant rights running into the Atlantic Ocean, and would also significantly reduce the claims of Argentina on the Antarctic continent and its waters.
Beagle conflict
In 1971 Chile and Argentina signed an agreement formally submitting the Beagle Channel issue to binding arbitration under auspices of the UK's Queen Elizabeth II. The court that was to decide the controversy was composed of five judges selected by Chile and Argentina from the International Court of Justice at The Hague. The court of arbitration's final decision would be submitted to the British Crown, which was then to recommend acceptance or rejection of the award of the court but not to modify it. On 2 May 1977 the court ruled that the islands and all adjacent formations belonged to Chile. See the Report and decision of the Court of Arbitration. In their only meeting in 1974 Juan Perón expressed his wishes to settle the conflict to Augusto Pinochet.
1984 Argentine Beagle conflict dispute resolution referendum
A non-binding referendum on resolving the Beagle conflict was held in Argentina on 25 November 1984. Voters were asked whether they approved of the government's negotiated settlement with Chile, which would result in Argentina recognising the Picton, Lennox and Nueva islands as being Chilean territory. Although the plebiscite was not binding, President Raul Alfonsin declared that he would respect the outcome of the vote. The proposal was approved by 82.6% of voters, with a turnout of 70%.
Chilean Torpedo boat Quidora (PTF-82)
On February 19, 1982, six weeks before the beginning of the Falklands War, an incident occurred that could have sparked a full-fledged war between Chile and Argentina during the Papal mediation in the Beagle conflict. An Argentine patrol boat, the ARA "Gurruchaga" (Ex-USS "Luiseno" (ATF-156)) was anchored at Deceit Island inside the Beagle zone under mediation in Vatican, ostensibly providing support for sports boats participating in the Rio de Janeiro-Sydney boat race. The "Quidora" approached and ordered the Argentine ship to leave the area. She fired several warning shots when the Argentine craft refused to move, as other Chilean ships converged to the scene. Although originally ordered not to leave the area and to wait for Argentine warships to arrive, the Argentine patrol boat received new orders to proceed to port as it became obvious that the Chilean navy had no intentions of backing down.
Beagle Channel cartography since 1881
This map, whose southern part is reproduced here, is included in Col. Sir Thomas Holdich's work "The Countries of the King's Award" written immediately after his work on the British Arbitration in 1898–1902. After the British Arbitral Award of 1902 and during the course of the work marking out the frontier line indicated therein, Holdich visited the Beagle Channel zone which was not included in the arbitration. In the Beagle Channel region the map marks the international boundary as passing through the latter up to beyond its eastern mouth. Picton, Nueva and Lennox Islands and all the other islands extending southwards as far as Cape Horn are shown as under Chilean sovereignty.
ARA Canal Beagle
In addition to coastal and riverine activities in Argentina, "Canal Beagle" also operated overseas. In 1989, "Canal Beagle" helped remove oil from the shipwreck of the polar transport , in an effort to reduce pollution in the Antarctic waters. 
In 1992 she transported to the Gulf of Fonseca, Honduras, the four "Baradero"-class patrol boats used under United Nations mandate ONUCA.
Magic Kids (TV channel)
Before Magic Kids became a pan-regional signal, the channel was only available in Argentina. Then, in some countries of Latin America (such as Peru, Chile, Colombia and Ecuador (in 1995 ), among others) opened the signal carried by satellite. In Chile, between 1995 and 1996, was in various regional cable operators like TV Cable Intercom, who led the Magic Kids sign to the small towns of Santiago and Rancagua until 1996, when the merger comes Metrópolis Intercom. In 1995, Magic Kids were in the towns of Region I to Region III by the cable operator Multivision until 1997, when you switch to VTR Cablexpress . In La Serena, was in the second half of 1995 for a month for Cablevision, replacing the sign of The Big Channel until 1996, when she returned the signal. In an interview with Jorge Contreras of a popular magazine of Argentina, he said he could issue a Latin American programs that produced the channel, but no foreign series, because they had acquired the rights only to Argentina . In addition, cable operators said that America had launched the Kids Magic signal without authorization, for which he himself had to contact all operators to withdraw the signal to avoid problems. This situation eventually led to hundreds of reviews and complaints from viewers in Latin America to the cable operators for having taken the sign of Magic Kids in their respective countries.It premiered the French animated series Cococinel, "Mr. Go", "The Trap Door" and WMAC Masters.
Beagle conflict
The Beagle conflict was a border dispute between Chile and Argentina over the possession of Picton, Lennox and Nueva islands and the scope of the maritime jurisdiction associated with those islands that brought the countries to the brink of war in 1978.
Beagle Channel cartography since 1881
The international boundary shown in the Beagle Channel zone corresponds to the Argentine claim in the area which the arbitral decision of 18 April 1977 put a definitive end. Nueva Island is not shown on the map, and Picton and Lennox Islands are partially shown, coloured as belonging to the Argentine Republic. Nevertheless, all the other islands and islets extending southward as far as Cape Horn figure as under Chilean sovereignty.