Britain should allow Argentina access to the F-16 in order to "stop Chinese military influence directly in its tracks" argues the author.
ukdefencejournal.org.uk
40 years since the Falklands War in 1982, conflict has once again been sparked by Argentina. However, the conflict is not fought against another opponent, but between foreign powers offering various new aircraft to the Argentine Air Force.
The competition was initiated after the retirement of the French-built Mirage fighter in 2015 due to budget restraints. In the subsequent 7 years since then, Argentina has been on the hunt for a successor, with various nations offering up secondhand fighters such as Jordan and Spain offering up Mirage F1s or Israel’s offer of modernized Kfirs. And in other cases being offered new fighters such as Sweden’s Saab Gripen, and most famously South Korea’s KAI FA-50.
However, all of those aircraft were unable to be selected due to one common factor: British Influence.
After the
Falklands War, the United Kingdom placed a full embargo upon any and all military hardware from reaching Argentina. For the rest of the 20th century, the embargo showed little to no effect upon the Argentine Armed Forces, however as nations began rearming in the 21st century, Argentina found itself with limited options in terms of its Air Force modernization. The Air Force was forced to rely on Mirage fighters and older A-4 attackers, both of which were veterans of the
Falklands War.
The United States even maintained an arms embargo on Argentina from the 1970s until the early 1990s due to Argentine assistance during the 1991 Operation Desert Shield, where they committed a destroyer, two corvettes, and a supply ship as part of their efforts.
Later on, in 1998, Argentina would be declared a ‘Major non-NATO Ally’, the sixth nation in the world to receive the title after Australia, Egypt, Israel, Japan, South Korea, and New Zealand. During this time period, The United States made an offer to sell 36+6 F-16A/Bs, unfortunately, due to financial insecurities, the Argentines declined the offer.
Fast forward to 2021. After the UK had rejected Argentina being able to access dozens of
aircraft due to their British-built Martin-Baker Ejection Seats, there were only a handful of
options left for Argentina. Which includes the Chinese contender to the F-16, the JF-17 Block III. The JF-17 is a Chinese/Pakistani joint venture designed to replace older fighters in the Pakistan Air Force, as well as try and contend with the F-16 on the export market.
To the Argentines, the JF-17 looks promising, as with its cheap price tag compared to the MiG-35 (which the Russians were currently offering), it looked like the best choice. Around this time, America had appointed a new SOUTHCOM commander, Gen. Laura J. Richardson.
During General Richardson’s testimony to the United States Congress, she made an explicit request to Representatives of the Armed Service Committee that the United States should aggressively market the F-16 to Argentina in order to stop Chinese influence in ‘America’s Backyard’, even stating that the US should appeal to the UK to lower the embargo to stop Chinese influence from spreading.
Here is where we meet the modern day. The United States is currently appealing to the UK to let them export F-16s to Argentina. Most British people would immediately reject the offer, having said that, this is where the argument against Argentina becomes shortsighted. Argentina, at one point or another, will press on with the recovery of its armed forces, and even today it has various procurement programs in place to restore lost capabilities. The position in which I believe is that the British should lift, or at least reduce the severity of, the arms embargo. If the British do not lift the embargo, South America will fall further and further into Chinese and Russian influence.
Nations such as Peru and Venezuela are already using Russian-built combat aircraft, as well as Uruguay, and Bolivia considering Russian or Chinese light fighters to replace their older systems. By denying Argentina its last opportunity to acquire western-built fighters, the UK has essentially pushed Argentina to the point where it will have to acquire equipment from China.
The Argentines have held out for decades in their attempt to still keep procuring from the West, yet they will be forced to turn away if the UK continues its harsh embargo.
Here’s where the UK has an opportunity: Allow the United States to export the F-16 to
Argentina. Allowing Argentina access to the F-16 stops Chinese military influence directly in its tracks.
The F-16 is a well-known fighter in the British Ministry of Defense, so none of its capabilities will come as a surprise to the Royal Air Force, the same cannot be said for the JF-17 whose capabilities are unknown by western air forces. The F-16 would also help strengthen ties between the United Kingdom and Argentina, as the UK could be seen in a more “accepting” light by the Argentine people.
The British politicians have the last word nonetheless, and I suspect that some may see the current threat of Chinese military influence expanding to Latin America being a much greater common threat than the disagreements of the past.
️?? Launched in December 2018, the Riachuelo, the 1⃣st of the 4⃣ Scorpène submarines of the ProSub program successfully completed her sea trials and has now been delivered and entered into service within the Marinha do Brasil. 
