Amid the tension between Chile and Argentina over the Strait of Magellan, the head of the Navy of the latter nation, Admiral Juan Carlos Romay, reaffirmed in an interview with a Chilean media outlet Chilean sovereignty in this area.
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Recently, the head of the Argentine Air Force, Gustavo Valverde, stated in a YouTube interview that the Strait of Magellan was part of Argentina’s sovereignty.
The situation led the government of José Antonio Kast to present a note of protest and the Argentine Foreign Ministry to issue a statement establishing the validity of the 1881 and 1984 treaties, which confirm Chilean sovereignty over the strait.
Thus, Romay spoke with the DEF media regarding the operation of the Argentine Navy and the presence of this nation in the South Atlantic, which led him to address the situation in the Strait of Magellan.
“The South Atlantic is a strategic place, precisely because in this region we have the main bioceanic passages to connect the Atlantic with the Pacific, either through theStrait of Magellan, which belongs to Chile, or through the southern tip, Cape Horn,” said the head of the Argentine Navy.
In this regard, Romay detailed that the South Atlantic sector is strategic for Argentina due to its projection towards Antarctica and the increased interest of various nations in the area.
“Exploiting both the scientific aspect and resources there. At the same time, something that perhaps was not so tangible before: technological advancement makes obtaining resources from the ocean more viable for certain companies or countries, as is happening with oil exploitation north of the Falklands. Therefore, it is vital to have good surveillance and control of all our maritime spaces and deterrence power,” he emphasized.
On the other hand, when asked during the interview about the current state of the Argentine Navy, the admiral said: “we look forward with optimism.”
“I would like to emphasize the need for State policies that transcend different government administrations. I mentioned the capabilities we lost; in that context, no matter how well-intentioned an administration is, everything cannot be recovered in a short time,” he explained.
He later stressed that the ships of the Argentine Navy “are 40 years old. That is, technologically they are quite outdated”.
