It has not ceased to produce concern in the last few hours on both sides of the Andes that the republics of Chile and Argentina have begun to publicly discuss the ownership of the Strait of Magellan, a historic maritime passage located at the southernmost tip of South America. Situated between the Chilean Patagonia and the Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego, it connects the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, and while its eastern part belongs to the Argentine province of Tierra del Fuego, Antarctica and South Atlantic Islands, the western part corresponds to Chile.
It all began when, in an interview, the Chief of the General Staff of the Argentine Air Force, Brigadier General Gustavo Javier Valverde, referred to the sovereignty of the southern maritime route in these terms: “We have to be present there because that is an Atlantic-Pacific bi-oceanic key,” concluding with “Magellan, the south, the Drake, all that is Argentine sovereignty.”
The remarks prompted an immediate reaction in neighboring Chile, drawing strong criticism from across the political spectrum. The first to respond was Interior and Government Secretariat Minister Claudio Alvarado, who holds both portfolios. “We do not agree with these statements, because the Strait of Magellan in its entirety is unquestionably Chilean, as established by the treaties signed by both countries in 1881 and 1984,” he said, adding that “it is striking that these kinds of statements are periodically being made.” Alvarado said the Chilean Foreign Ministry would ultimately assess “what action should be taken in response to the position expressed or conveyed by certain Argentine officials.”
Chilean protest note and final message from President Kast
On the same day, last Tuesday, August 25, from the Chilean Ministry of Foreign Affairs, its head, Francisco Pérez Mackenna, announced that Chile will send a protest note to Argentina over the statements by the head of the Air Force regarding the sovereignty of the Strait of Magellan, and took the opportunity to ratify the statements of his colleague Alvarado with these words: “The Strait is indisputably Chilean.”
It turns out that the opinion of the high-ranking Argentine official Valverde had been more extensive, as he also specified that “we must remain there, making presence, because as a bi-oceanic key, Atlantic-Pacific, that can alert a lot of things.” The minister made these statements on a streaming program of the Buenos Aires YouTube channel “La Fábrica del Podcast.”
In turn, on the other side, the newspaper “La Tercera” from Santiago pointed out that despite being on an official tour in Vietnam, Pérez Mackenna returned to the topic to make “a severe call to the authorities of other countries to be responsible with their statements and not confuse their citizens.”
He also explained that the Treaty of 1881, also known as the “Boundary Treaty,” recognized Chile’s sovereignty and established the perpetual neutralization of the passage, guaranteeing “free navigation for ships of all nations, a demilitarized zone open to all the flags of the world.” And the Treaty of Peace and Friendship of 1984, which was signed in the Vatican, with Pope John Paul II, definitively ratified the southern limits, reaffirming that “the waters of the Strait are under Chilean jurisdiction, and settling the divergences over its eastern mouth.”
This treaty also put an end to the serious Argentine-Chilean conflict of the time over the limits of the Beagle Channel, which brought both countries to the brink of war in December 1978. It should not be forgotten that the importance of the Strait of Magellan becomes greater when it is recognized as a key commercial and strategic navigation route that avoids the detour around the stormy Cape Horn.
Official closure of the discussion but differences remain on the Argentine side
This is not an isolated event. In recent years, we have seen an Argentine decree talking about “joint control” of the Strait of Magellan, as well as Argentine air alerts in the border area, claims by Argentine senators against sovereign decisions adopted in Punta Arenas, and high naval commanders stating that “the mouth of Magellan is Argentine,” also commented the cited Chilean foreign minister.
However, it is considered that the good friendship between the presidents of both countries, Kast and Milei, has prevailed to quickly put an end to the controversy, and some Argentine media like “La Nación” maintain that Chile has positively valued the clarification made by the Argentine Foreign Ministry in the words of President Kast himself: “We appreciate the statements of the Argentine government recognizing the sovereignty of the Strait of Magellan, which is Chilean,” stated the president from La Moneda, before leaving without accepting questions.
It was also known that Kast had just read the message from President Milei in which he states that “the Argentine position regarding the Strait of Magellan is as established by the Boundary Treaty of 1881 and the Treaty of Peace and Friendship of 1984. Both instruments are fully in force and are considered definitive for the Argentine Republic.” It was the quick response to the protest letter from the Chilean government.
However, for opposition leaders in Chile, this is not an isolated episode, but it adds to a series of bilateral tensions that have been accumulating since Javier Milei came to the Presidency. Even more so when earlier this year, last January, the head of the Argentine Naval Hydrography Service, Rear Admiral Hernán Montero, had stated that “the mouth of Magellan is Argentine,” a phrase that also generated a diplomatic response from Santiago at that time.
It has not ceased to produce concern in the last few hours on both sides of the Andes that the republics of Chile and Argentina have begun to publicly discuss the ownership of the Strait of Magellan, a historic maritime passage located at the southernmost tip of South America. Situated between the Chilean Patagonia and the Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego, it connects the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans, and while its eastern part belongs to the Argentine province of Tierra del Fuego, Antarctica and South Atlantic Islands, the western part corresponds to Chile.
It all began when, in an interview, the Chief of the General Staff of the Argentine Air Force, Brigadier General Gustavo Javier Valverde, referred to the sovereignty of the southern maritime route in these terms: “We have to be present there because that is an Atlantic-Pacific bi-oceanic key,” concluding with “Magellan, the south, the Drake, all that is Argentine sovereignty.”
The remarks prompted an immediate reaction in neighboring Chile, drawing strong criticism from across the political spectrum. The first to respond was Interior and Government Secretariat Minister Claudio Alvarado, who holds both portfolios. “We do not agree with these statements, because the Strait of Magellan in its entirety is unquestionably Chilean, as established by the treaties signed by both countries in 1881 and 1984,” he said, adding that “it is striking that these kinds of statements are periodically being made.” Alvarado said the Chilean Foreign Ministry would ultimately assess “what action should be taken in response to the position expressed or conveyed by certain Argentine officials.”
Chilean protest note and final message from President Kast
On the same day, last Tuesday, August 25, from the Chilean Ministry of Foreign Affairs, its head, Francisco Pérez Mackenna, announced that Chile will send a protest note to Argentina over the statements by the head of the Air Force regarding the sovereignty of the Strait of Magellan, and took the opportunity to ratify the statements of his colleague Alvarado with these words: “The Strait is indisputably Chilean.”
It turns out that the opinion of the high-ranking Argentine official Valverde had been more extensive, as he also specified that “we must remain there, making presence, because as a bi-oceanic key, Atlantic-Pacific, that can alert a lot of things.” The minister made these statements on a streaming program of the Buenos Aires YouTube channel “La Fábrica del Podcast.”
In turn, on the other side, the newspaper “La Tercera” from Santiago pointed out that despite being on an official tour in Vietnam, Pérez Mackenna returned to the topic to make “a severe call to the authorities of other countries to be responsible with their statements and not confuse their citizens.”
He also explained that the Treaty of 1881, also known as the “Boundary Treaty,” recognized Chile’s sovereignty and established the perpetual neutralization of the passage, guaranteeing “free navigation for ships of all nations, a demilitarized zone open to all the flags of the world.” And the Treaty of Peace and Friendship of 1984, which was signed in the Vatican, with Pope John Paul II, definitively ratified the southern limits, reaffirming that “the waters of the Strait are under Chilean jurisdiction, and settling the divergences over its eastern mouth.”
This treaty also put an end to the serious Argentine-Chilean conflict of the time over the limits of the Beagle Channel, which brought both countries to the brink of war in December 1978. It should not be forgotten that the importance of the Strait of Magellan becomes greater when it is recognized as a key commercial and strategic navigation route that avoids the detour around the stormy Cape Horn.
Official closure of the discussion but differences remain on the Argentine side
This is not an isolated event. In recent years, we have seen an Argentine decree talking about “joint control” of the Strait of Magellan, as well as Argentine air alerts in the border area, claims by Argentine senators against sovereign decisions adopted in Punta Arenas, and high naval commanders stating that “the mouth of Magellan is Argentine,” also commented the cited Chilean foreign minister.
However, it is considered that the good friendship between the presidents of both countries, Kast and Milei, has prevailed to quickly put an end to the controversy, and some Argentine media like “La Nación” maintain that Chile has positively valued the clarification made by the Argentine Foreign Ministry in the words of President Kast himself: “We appreciate the statements of the Argentine government recognizing the sovereignty of the Strait of Magellan, which is Chilean,” stated the president from La Moneda, before leaving without accepting questions.
It was also known that Kast had just read the message from President Milei in which he states that “the Argentine position regarding the Strait of Magellan is as established by the Boundary Treaty of 1881 and the Treaty of Peace and Friendship of 1984. Both instruments are fully in force and are considered definitive for the Argentine Republic.” It was the quick response to the protest letter from the Chilean government.
However, for opposition leaders in Chile, this is not an isolated episode, but it adds to a series of bilateral tensions that have been accumulating since Javier Milei came to the Presidency. Even more so when earlier this year, last January, the head of the Argentine Naval Hydrography Service, Rear Admiral Hernán Montero, had stated that “the mouth of Magellan is Argentine,” a phrase that also generated a diplomatic response from Santiago at that time.
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fuente: Google News
