Argentina-Chile relations
Encyclopedia
Argentina–Chile relations refers to interstate relations between the Republic of Chile
and the Argentine Republic
. Argentina and Chile share the world's third-longest international border, which is 5300 km (3,293.3 mi) long and runs from north to the south along the Andes
mountains. Although gaining their independency together, during much of the 19th and the 20th century, relations between the countries chilled due to disputes over Patagonia
, though in recent years relations have improved dramatically. Despite increased trade between the two countries they have followed quite different economic policies; Chile has signed free trade agreements with countries such as China, the USA, Canada, South Korea and the EU and is an active member of the APEC, while Argentina belongs to the Mercosur
regional free trade area. Both countries are members of the Union of South American Nations.
The relationship between the two countries can be traced back to an alliance during colonial times. Both colonies were offshoots of the Viceroyalty of Peru
, with the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata
(which Argentina was a part of) being broken off in 1776, and Chile
not being broken off until independence. Argentina and Chile were however colonized in different processes, Chile was conquered as an southward extension of the conquest of Peru while Argentina was colonized both from Peru, Chile and from the Atlantic.
Argentina and Chile were close allies during the wars of independence from the Spanish Empire
. Chile, like most of the revolting colonies, was defeated at a point by Spanish armies, while Argentina remained independent throughout its war of independence
. After the Chilean defeat in the Disaster of Rancagua
, the remnants of the Chilean Army led by Bernardo O'Higgins
took refuge in Mendoza
. Argentine General José de San Martín
, by that time governor of the region
, included the Chilean exiles in the Army of the Andes
, and in 1817 led the crossing of the Andes
, defeated the Spaniards, and confirmed the Chilean Independence
. While he was in Santiago, Chile
a cabildo abierto
(open town hall meeting) offered San Martín the governorship of Chile, which he declined, in order to continue the liberating campaign in Peru.
. Chile and Argentina signed a treaty. Meanwhile, an envoy from Chile was sent to London inviting Lord Cochrane
. The naval fleet, after being built, launched a sea campaign to fight the Spanish fleet in the Pacific to liberate Peru. After a successful land and sea campaign, San Martín proclaimed the Independence of Peru
in 1821.
In 1837 Felipe Braun, one of Santa Cruz
's most capable generals and high decorated veteran of the war of independence, defeated an Argentine army sent to topple Santa Cruz. On 12 November 1838 Argentine representants signed an agreement with the Bolivian troops.. On 20 January 1839 the Chilean troops obtained a decisive victory in the Battle of Yungay
and the short-lived Peru-Bolivian Confederation now came to an end.
and Chile from 1864 to 1866, that began with Spain's seizure of the guano
-rich Chincha Islands
, part of a series of attempts by Isabel II of Spain to reassert her country's lost influence in its former South American empire, an alliance was formed between Ecuador
, Bolivia
, Peru and Chile against Spain. In this way, all the ports of the Pacific coast of South America south of Colombia became closed and hostile to the Spanish fleet. But Argentina refused to join the alliance and maintained amicable relations with Spain and delivered coal to the Spanish fleet.
the secret Treaty of alliance against Chile and on 24 September the Argentine president Domingo Faustino Sarmiento
asked the Argentine Chamber of Deputies
to join. The chamber approved with 48 to 18 votes the treaty and made available a credit of 6.000.000 pesos for military spending. But in 1874, after the delivery of the Chilean ironclad Almirante Cochrane and the ironclad Blanco Encalada, the Argentine Senate
postponed the matter until the end of 1874 and Sarmiento could not sign the treaty. During the war Argentina remain neutral and signed with Chile the Border Treaty of 1881.
. The Argentine explorer Francisco Perito Moreno suggested that many Patagonian lakes draining to the Pacific were in fact part of the Atlantic basin but had been moraine-dammed during the quaternary
glaciations changing their outlets to the west. In 1902, war was again avoided when British King Edward VII agreed to mediate between the two nations. He established the current border in the Patagonia region in part by dividing many disputed lakes into two equal parts, most of these lakes still have one name on each side of the frontier. A dispute that arose in the northern Puna de Atacama
was resolved with the Puna de Atacama Lawsuit of 1899.
, the Argentine foreign minister Estanislao Zeballos offered to the US-minister in Buenos Aires the Argentine province of Salta
as basis to attack Chile overland in return for the session of southern
Chile to Argentina. Later, Chile and the United States averted the war.
in the 1890s. More significantly the two countries divided their influence in Latin America into two spheres: Argentina would not threaten Chiles Pacific Coast hegemony, and Santiago promised not to intrude beyond the Andes.
islands in the Beagle Channel
were rightfully hers, although this was in direct contradiction of the 1881 treaty, as the Beagle Channel Arbitration
, and the initial Beagle Channel cartography since 1881
stated.
Both countries submitted the controversy to binding arbitration by the international tribunal
. The award (see Beagle Channel Arbitration between the Republic of Argentina and the Republic of Chile, and Decision of the Court of Arbitration) recognized 1977 all the islands to Chile, but Argentine unilaterally repudiated the sentence and planned a war of aggression
against Chile.
In 1978 Direct negotiations between Chile and Argentina in 1977-78
failed and relations became extremely tense. Chile and Argentina sent troops to the border in Patagonia and large areas were mined. Argentina started on 22 December the Operation Soberanía
in order to invade the islands and continental Chile, but after 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 for the Pope to mediate the dispute through the offices of Cardinal Antonio Samoré his special envoy (See Papal mediation in the Beagle conflict
).
On 9 January 1979 the Act of Montevideo was signed in Uruguay
pledging both sides to a peaceful solution and a return to the military situation of early 1977. The conflict was still latent during the Falklands war and was resolved only after the fall of the Argentine military junta.
A number of prominent public officials in Chile still point to past Argentine treaty repudiations when referring to relations between the two neighbors.
During the Falklands War in 1982, with the still pending Beagle conflict
, Chile and Colombia became the only Latin American countries to abstain from voting in the TIAR
(as did also USA and Trinidad Tobago).
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
announced him that "[Chile] have to know what we are doing now, because they will be the next in turn. Also Óscar Camilión, the last Argentine Foreign Minister before the war (March 29, 1981 to December 11, 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."
Such preparations were public. On June 2, 1982 the newspaper La Prensa
published an article by Manfred Schönfeld explaining what would follow Argentina's expected victory in the Falkland Islands: "The war will not be finished for us, because after the defeat of our enemies in the Falklands, they must be blown away from South Georgia, the South Sandwich Islands
, and all Argentine Austral archipelagos."
This intention was probably known by the Chilean government as the Chileans provided the United Kingdom with ‘limited, but significant information’ . The Chilean Connection is described in detail by Sir Lawrence Freedman in his book The Official History of the Falklands Campaign.
Post-Pinochet democratic governments have given greater support to the Argentine claim on the Falkland Islands.
The Peace and Amity Treaty of 1984 was an agreement signed in 1984 between Argentina and Chile establishing the friendship relation between the two countries. Particularly, the treaty also defines limitation of the Strait of Magellan
and over the possession of the Picton, Lennox and Nueva
islands and sea located south of Tierra del Fuego
, granting the islands to Chile, navigation rights to both countries and 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.
The 1984 treaty was succeeded by the Maipu Treaty of Integration and Cooperation (Tratado de Maipú de Integración y Cooperación) signed on October 30, 2009
In the 1990s relations improved dramatically. The dictator and last president of the Argentine Military Junta General Reynaldo Bignone
called for democratic elections in 1983 and Augusto Pinochet
of Chile in 1989. As a consequence militaristic tendencies faded in the Southern Cone
. The Argentine presidents Carlos Menem
and Fernando de la Rúa
had particularly good relations with Chile.
According to a 1998 negotiation held in Buenos Aires, a 50 km (31.1 mi) section of the boundary in the Southern Patagonian Ice Field
is still pending of mapping and demarcation according to the limits already settled by the 1881 treaty. In 2006 president Néstor Kirchner
invited Chile to define the border, but Michelle Bachelet
's government left the invitation unanswered. The same year, the Chilean government sent a note to Argentina complaining about Argentine tourism maps that showed a normal boundary in the Southern Patagonian Icefield with most of the area belonging to Argentina. (map of the area)
Officially Chile supports the Argentine claim on the Falkland Islands
.
Geopolitics over Antarctica and the control of the passages between the south Atlantic and the south Pacific have led to the founding of cities and towns such as Ushuaia
and Puerto Williams
both claiming to be the southernmost cities in world.
Actually in Antarctica both countries, along with the United Kingdom, have research bases. The three nations claim the totality of Antarctic Peninsula
.
The trade balance shows a lot of asymmetry as of 2005 Chile is the 3rd export trading partner for Argentina, behind Brazil and the United States. Some well known import products from Argentina in Chile include cereals and meat that once caused the Meat riots
in Chile. More recently large amounts of Chilean capital have been invested in Argentina, especially in the retail market.
In 1996, Chile became an associated member of Mercosur
, a regional trade agreement that Argentina and Brazil created in the 1990s. This associated membership does not mean full membership.
In 1997, Argentina and Chile signed a Mining Integration Agreement. In 2009 they gave the go-ahead for the $3-billion Pascua Lama
project to mine an ore
body on the border of the two countries.
signed a natural gas
exportation treaty with Chilean president Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle
in 1996. In 2005, President Néstor Kirchner
suspended the treaty due to a supply shortage experienced by Argentina. The situation in Argentina was partly resolved when Argentina increased its own imports from Bolivia
, a country with no diplomatic relations with Chile since 1978. In the import contract signed with Bolivia it was specified that not even a drop of Bolivian gas could be sold to Chile from Argentina.
's president suggested that both countries launch a joint bid for the 2014 FIFA World Cup
but was abandoned in favour of
a CONMEBOL
unified posture to allow the tournament be hosted in Brazil.
In 2009, both countries organized the Dakar Rally
, the first time the competition goes out of Africa. The event repeated in 2010 and would be again in 2011
standard with Chile following the same direction on 14 September.
Since 1990s, both militaries began a close defense cooperation and friendship policy. On September 1991 they signed together with Brazil, the Mendoza Declaration, which commits signatories not to use, develop, produce, acquire, stock, or transfer —directly or indirectly— chemical
or biological
weapons.
Joint exercises were established on an annual basis in the three armed forces alternately in Argentina and Chile territory. An example of such manoeuvres is the Patrulla Antártica Naval Combinada (Joint Antarctic Naval Patrol) performed by both Navies to guarantee safety to all touristic and scientific ships that are in transit within the Antarctic Peninsula
.
Both nations are highly involved in UN peacekeeping
missions. UNFICYP in Cyprus
was a precedent where Chilean troops are embedded in the Argentine contingent. They played a key role together at MINUSTAH in Haiti
(Video Haiti) and in 2005 they began the formation of a joint force for future United Nations mandates. Named Cruz del Sur (Crux
), the new force began assembly in 2008 with headquarters alternately on each country every year.
In 2005, while the Argentine Navy school ship ARA Libertad
was under overhaul, Argentine cadets were invited to complete their graduation on the Chilean Navy
school ship Esmeralda
and in another gesture of confidence, on 24 June 2007, a Gendarmeria Nacional Argentina (Border Guard) patrol was given permission to enter Chile to rescue tourists after their bus became trapped in snow.
signed the Maipu Treaty of Integration and Cooperation ( ) http://chileabroad.gov.cl/argentina/files/2009/11/tratado-de-maipu-de-integracion-y-cooperacion.doc which establish the basis for the future relationship between the two countries.
On 13 March 2010 after the Chilean earthquake
the benefit concert Argentina Abraza Chile (Argentina Hugs Chile) is done at Buenos Aires and the Argentine Air Force Mobile Field Hospital
is deployed to Curicó
.
On 8 April 2010 the new Chilean president Sebastián Piñera
on his first trip abroad visited Buenos Aires
where he thanked president Cristina Fernández for the help received
due the earthquake occurred last February. He also stated his commitment to a deeper integration
On June 2010 (as in 2009 and years before ) Chile supported again the Argentina position on the United Nations Special Committee on Decolonization
calling for direct negotiations between Argentina and the United Kingdom about the Falklands Islands dispute.
In September 2010 the CONARE (the Argentine National Refugee Commission, dependent of the Interior Ministry) gave asylum to Chilean citizen Galvarino Apablaza, who lives in Argentina married with journalist Paula Chain and have three Argentine-born childs. Chain works for the Argentine Government press office since 2009. Apablaza is accused of being involved with the murder of Chilean Senator Jaime Guzmán
in 1991, during the government of Patricio Aylwin
, as well as the kidnapping of the son of one of the owners of El Mercurio
newspaper. The asylum is rejected by all Chilean political forces, and by the Argentine political opposition forces. Some Argentine media and journalists pointed out that the Argentine government ignored a ruling of the Argentine Supreme Court of Justice allowing the extradition of Apablaza. The Chilean's lawyer of the State, Gustavo Gené, pointed out that there was no questioning of the Chilean legal system by the Argentine Commission, and that the reasons for granting political asylum were only "humanitarian".
On October 28, 2010 president Sebastian Piñera
traveled to Buenos Aires to give their condolences for Néstor Kirchner
death
On December 2010, the joint peacekeeping force Cruz del Sur will be presented to the UN
. However, the demarcation of the limit in Campo de Hielo Sur
(which historically Chileans had considered as a closed matter) remains an unresolved issue of controversy between these two nations.
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
and the Argentine Republic
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
. Argentina and Chile share the world's third-longest international border, which is 5300 km (3,293.3 mi) long and runs from north to the south along the Andes
Andes
The Andes is the world's longest continental mountain range. It is a continual range of highlands along the western coast of South America. This range is about long, about to wide , and of an average height of about .Along its length, the Andes is split into several ranges, which are separated...
mountains. Although gaining their independency together, during much of the 19th and the 20th century, relations between the countries chilled due to disputes over Patagonia
Patagonia
Patagonia is a region located in Argentina and Chile, integrating the southernmost section of the Andes mountains to the southwest towards the Pacific ocean and from the east of the cordillera to the valleys it follows south through Colorado River towards Carmen de Patagones in the Atlantic Ocean...
, though in recent years relations have improved dramatically. Despite increased trade between the two countries they have followed quite different economic policies; Chile has signed free trade agreements with countries such as China, the USA, Canada, South Korea and the EU and is an active member of the APEC, while Argentina belongs to the Mercosur
Mercosur
Mercosur or Mercosul is an economic and political agreement among Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay. Founded in 1991 by the Treaty of Asunción, which was later amended and updated by the 1994 Treaty of Ouro Preto. Its purpose is to promote free trade and the fluid movement of goods, people,...
regional free trade area. Both countries are members of the Union of South American Nations.
Rule under Spain and Independence
Viceroyalty of Peru
Created in 1542, the Viceroyalty of Peru was a Spanish colonial administrative district that originally contained most of Spanish-ruled South America, governed from the capital of Lima...
, with the Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata
Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata
The Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata, , was the last and most short-lived Viceroyalty of the Spanish Empire in America.The Viceroyalty was established in 1776 out of several former Viceroyalty of Perú dependencies that mainly extended over the Río de la Plata basin, roughly the present day...
(which Argentina was a part of) being broken off in 1776, and Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
not being broken off until independence. Argentina and Chile were however colonized in different processes, Chile was conquered as an southward extension of the conquest of Peru while Argentina was colonized both from Peru, Chile and from the Atlantic.
Argentina and Chile were close allies during the wars of independence from the Spanish Empire
Spanish Empire
The Spanish Empire comprised territories and colonies administered directly by Spain in Europe, in America, Africa, Asia and Oceania. It originated during the Age of Exploration and was therefore one of the first global empires. At the time of Habsburgs, Spain reached the peak of its world power....
. Chile, like most of the revolting colonies, was defeated at a point by Spanish armies, while Argentina remained independent throughout its war of independence
Argentine War of Independence
The Argentine War of Independence was fought from 1810 to 1818 by Argentine patriotic forces under Manuel Belgrano, Juan José Castelli and José de San Martín against royalist forces loyal to the Spanish crown...
. After the Chilean defeat in the Disaster of Rancagua
Disaster of Rancagua
The Battle of Rancagua, also known as the Disaster of Rancagua occurred in October 1814 when the Spanish under Mariano Osorio defeated rebel Chilean forces....
, the remnants of the Chilean Army led by Bernardo O'Higgins
Bernardo O'Higgins
Bernardo O'Higgins Riquelme was a Chilean independence leader who, together with José de San Martín, freed Chile from Spanish rule in the Chilean War of Independence. Although he was the second Supreme Director of Chile , he is considered one of Chile's founding fathers, as he was the first holder...
took refuge in Mendoza
Mendoza, Argentina
Mendoza is the capital city of Mendoza Province, in Argentina. It is located in the northern-central part of the province, in a region of foothills and high plains, on the eastern side of the Andes. As of the , Mendoza's population was 110,993...
. Argentine General José de San Martín
José de San Martín
José Francisco de San Martín, known simply as Don José de San Martín , was an Argentine general and the prime leader of the southern part of South America's successful struggle for independence from Spain.Born in Yapeyú, Corrientes , he left his mother country at the...
, by that time governor of the region
Province of Cuyo
The Province of Cuyo was a historical Province of Argentina. Created on 14 November 1813 by a decree issued by the Second Triumvirate, it had its capital on Mendoza, and was composed by the territories of the present Argentine Provinces of Mendoza, San Juan and San Luis.The region was part of Chile...
, included the Chilean exiles in the Army of the Andes
Army of the Andes
The Army of the Andes was a military force created by the United Provinces of the Río de la Plata and mustered by general José de San Martín in his campaign to free Chile from the Spanish Empire...
, and in 1817 led the crossing of the Andes
Crossing of the Andes
The Crossing of the Andes was one of the most important feats in the Argentine and Chilean wars of independence, in which a combined army of Argentine soldiers and Chilean exiles invaded Chile leading to Chile's liberation from Spanish rule...
, defeated the Spaniards, and confirmed the Chilean Independence
Chilean Independence
Chilean War of Independence was an armed conflict between pro-Independence criollos who sought political and economic independence from Spain and royalist criollos, who supported the continued allegiance to and permanence within the Spanish Empire of the Kingdom of Chile...
. While he was in Santiago, Chile
Santiago, Chile
Santiago , also known as Santiago de Chile, is the capital and largest city of Chile, and the center of its largest conurbation . It is located in the country's central valley, at an elevation of above mean sea level...
a cabildo abierto
Cabildo (council)
For a discussion of the contemporary Spanish and Latin American cabildo, see Ayuntamiento.A cabildo or ayuntamiento was a former Spanish, colonial administrative council that governed a municipality. Cabildos were sometimes appointed, sometimes elected, but were considered to be representative of...
(open town hall meeting) offered San Martín the governorship of Chile, which he declined, in order to continue the liberating campaign in Peru.
First Chilean Navy Squadron
In 1817 Chile began the build up of its Navy in order to carry the war to the Viceroyalty of PerúViceroyalty of Peru
Created in 1542, the Viceroyalty of Peru was a Spanish colonial administrative district that originally contained most of Spanish-ruled South America, governed from the capital of Lima...
. Chile and Argentina signed a treaty. Meanwhile, an envoy from Chile was sent to London inviting Lord Cochrane
Thomas Cochrane, 10th Earl of Dundonald
Admiral Thomas Cochrane, 10th Earl of Dundonald, 1st Marquess of Maranhão, GCB, ODM , styled Lord Cochrane between 1778 and 1831, was a senior British naval flag officer and radical politician....
. The naval fleet, after being built, launched a sea campaign to fight the Spanish fleet in the Pacific to liberate Peru. After a successful land and sea campaign, San Martín proclaimed the Independence of Peru
Independence of Peru
The Peruvian War of Independence was a series of military conflicts beginning in 1809 that culminated in the proclamation of the independence of Peru by José de San Martín on July 28, 1821. During the previous decade Peru had been a stronghold for royalists, who fought those in favor of...
in 1821.
War against the Peru–Bolivian Confederation
From 1836 to 1839 Chile and Argentine fought united against the confederation due the potential power of this aroused the opposition of Argentina and, above all, Chile, due not only to its great territorial expanse but also to the perceived threat that such a rich state signified for the area. Chile declared the war on 11 November 1836 and Argentina on 19 May 1837.In 1837 Felipe Braun, one of Santa Cruz
Andrés de Santa Cruz
Andrés de Santa Cruz y Calahumana was President of Peru and Bolivia...
's most capable generals and high decorated veteran of the war of independence, defeated an Argentine army sent to topple Santa Cruz. On 12 November 1838 Argentine representants signed an agreement with the Bolivian troops.. On 20 January 1839 the Chilean troops obtained a decisive victory in the Battle of Yungay
Battle of Yungay
The Battle of Yungay effectively destroyed the Peru-Bolivian Confederation created by Bolivian Marshal Andrés de Santa Cruz in 1836...
and the short-lived Peru-Bolivian Confederation now came to an end.
Chincha's war
During a series of coastal and naval battles between Spain and its former colonies of PeruPeru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
and Chile from 1864 to 1866, that began with Spain's seizure of the guano
Guano
Guano is the excrement of seabirds, cave dwelling bats, and seals. Guano manure is an effective fertilizer due to its high levels of phosphorus and nitrogen and also its lack of odor. It was an important source of nitrates for gunpowder...
-rich Chincha Islands
Chincha Islands
The Chincha Islands are a group of three small islands 21 km off the southwest coast of Peru, to which they belong, near the town of Pisco,...
, part of a series of attempts by Isabel II of Spain to reassert her country's lost influence in its former South American empire, an alliance was formed between Ecuador
Ecuador
Ecuador , officially the Republic of Ecuador is a representative democratic republic in South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and by the Pacific Ocean to the west. It is one of only two countries in South America, along with Chile, that do not have a border...
, Bolivia
Bolivia
Bolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...
, Peru and Chile against Spain. In this way, all the ports of the Pacific coast of South America south of Colombia became closed and hostile to the Spanish fleet. But Argentina refused to join the alliance and maintained amicable relations with Spain and delivered coal to the Spanish fleet.
War of the Pacific
Peru and Bolivia signed on 6 February 1873 in LimaLima
Lima is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín rivers, in the central part of the country, on a desert coast overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Together with the seaport of Callao, it forms a contiguous urban area known as the Lima...
the secret Treaty of alliance against Chile and on 24 September the Argentine president Domingo Faustino Sarmiento
Domingo Faustino Sarmiento
Domingo Faustino Sarmiento was an Argentine activist, intellectual, writer, statesman and the seventh President of Argentina. His writing spanned a wide range of genres and topics, from journalism to autobiography, to political philosophy and history...
asked the Argentine Chamber of Deputies
Argentine Chamber of Deputies
The Chamber of Deputies is the lower house of the Argentine National Congress. This Chamber holds exclusive rights to create taxes, to draft troops, and to accuse the President, the ministers and the members of the Supreme Court before the Senate....
to join. The chamber approved with 48 to 18 votes the treaty and made available a credit of 6.000.000 pesos for military spending. But in 1874, after the delivery of the Chilean ironclad Almirante Cochrane and the ironclad Blanco Encalada, the Argentine Senate
Argentine Senate
The Argentine Senate is the upper house of the Argentine National Congress. It has 72 senators: three for each province and three for the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires...
postponed the matter until the end of 1874 and Sarmiento could not sign the treaty. During the war Argentina remain neutral and signed with Chile the Border Treaty of 1881.
Claims on Patagonia
The border disputes continued as Patagonia was still an unexplored area. The Border treaty of 1881 established the highest mountains that divides the drainage basins to the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic as the border. This concept was easy to apply in northern regions but in Patagonia drainage basins crossed the Andes; this led to dispute what over the highest peaks would be the frontier (favouring Argentina) or the drainage basins (favouring Chile). Argentina argued that previous documents referring to the boundary always mentioned the Snowy Cordillera as the frontier and not the continental divideContinental divide
A continental divide is a drainage divide on a continent such that the drainage basin on one side of the divide feeds into one ocean or sea, and the basin on the other side either feeds into a different ocean or sea, or else is endorheic, not connected to the open sea...
. The Argentine explorer Francisco Perito Moreno suggested that many Patagonian lakes draining to the Pacific were in fact part of the Atlantic basin but had been moraine-dammed during the quaternary
Quaternary
The Quaternary Period is the most recent of the three periods of the Cenozoic Era in the geologic time scale of the ICS. It follows the Neogene Period, spanning 2.588 ± 0.005 million years ago to the present...
glaciations changing their outlets to the west. In 1902, war was again avoided when British King Edward VII agreed to mediate between the two nations. He established the current border in the Patagonia region in part by dividing many disputed lakes into two equal parts, most of these lakes still have one name on each side of the frontier. A dispute that arose in the northern Puna de Atacama
Puna de Atacama
The Puna de Atacama or Atacama Plateau is an arid high plateau averaging about above sea level and spanning an area of , in the Andes of northern Chile and Argentina and southwest Bolivia. Before the War of the Pacific , the region belonged to Bolivia. In 1898 it was ceded to Argentina in...
was resolved with the Puna de Atacama Lawsuit of 1899.
Baltimore Crisis
During the Baltimore Crisis, that brought Chile and the United States on the brink of war in 1891, at the end of the Chilean Civil WarChilean Civil War
The Chilean Civil War of 1891 was an armed conflict between forces supporting Congress and forces supporting the sitting President, José Manuel Balmaceda. The war saw a confrontation between the Chilean Army and the Chilean Navy, which had sided with the president and the congress, respectively...
, the Argentine foreign minister Estanislao Zeballos offered to the US-minister in Buenos Aires the Argentine province of Salta
Salta
Salta is a city in northwestern Argentina and the capital city of the Salta Province. Along with its metropolitan area, it has a population of 464,678 inhabitants as of the , making it Argentina's eighth largest city.-Overview:...
as basis to attack Chile overland in return for the session of southern
Chile to Argentina. Later, Chile and the United States averted the war.
Pactos de Mayo
The Pactos de Mayo are four protocols signed in Santiago de Chile by Chile and Argentina on 28 May 1902 in order to extend their relations and resolve its territorial disputes. The disputes had led both countries to increase their military budgets and run an arms raceArms race
The term arms race, in its original usage, describes a competition between two or more parties for the best armed forces. Each party competes to produce larger numbers of weapons, greater armies, or superior military technology in a technological escalation...
in the 1890s. More significantly the two countries divided their influence in Latin America into two spheres: Argentina would not threaten Chiles Pacific Coast hegemony, and Santiago promised not to intrude beyond the Andes.
Beagle conflict
Trouble once again began to brew in the 1960s, when Argentina began to claim that the Picton, Lennox and NuevaPicton, Lennox and Nueva
Picton, Lennox and Nueva is a group of three islands on the extreme south of South America, in the Chilean commune of Cabo de Hornos in Antártica Chilena Province, Magallanes and Antártica Chilena Region...
islands in the Beagle Channel
Beagle Channel
thumb|right|300px|Aereal view of Beagle Channel. The Chilean [[Navarino Island]] is seen in the top-right while the Argentine part of [[Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego]] is seen at the bottom-left....
were rightfully hers, although this was in direct contradiction of the 1881 treaty, as the Beagle Channel Arbitration
Beagle Channel Arbitration
On 22 July 1971 Salvador Allende and Alejandro Lanusse, the Presidents of Chile and Argentina, signed an arbitration agreement . 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...
, and the initial Beagle Channel cartography since 1881
Beagle Channel cartography since 1881
The region of the Beagle Channel, explored by Robert FitzRoy eighteen-thirties, was one of the last ones 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.In...
stated.
Both countries submitted the controversy to binding arbitration by the international tribunal
Beagle Channel Arbitration
On 22 July 1971 Salvador Allende and Alejandro Lanusse, the Presidents of Chile and Argentina, signed an arbitration agreement . 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...
. The award (see Beagle Channel Arbitration between the Republic of Argentina and the Republic of Chile, and Decision of the Court of Arbitration) recognized 1977 all the islands to Chile, but Argentine unilaterally repudiated the sentence and planned a war of aggression
War of aggression
A war of aggression, sometimes also war of conquest, is a military conflict waged without the justification of self-defense usually for territorial gain and subjugation. The phrase is distinctly modern and diametrically opposed to the prior legal international standard of "might makes right", under...
against Chile.
In 1978 Direct negotiations between Chile and Argentina in 1977-78
Direct negotiations between Chile and Argentina in 1977-78
The direct negotiations between Chile and Argentina about the islands and maritime rights in Beagle conflict began after the Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom announced on 2 May 1977 the judgement of the Beagle Channel Arbitration to the governments of both countries. The the islands and...
failed and relations became extremely tense. Chile and Argentina sent troops to the border in Patagonia and large areas were mined. Argentina started on 22 December the Operation Soberanía
Operation Soberanía
Operación Soberanía was the codename of a planned Argentine military invasion of Chile to be carried out on 22 December 1978 due to the Beagle conflict dispute. The invasion was halted at the last minute and did not take place....
in order to invade the islands and continental Chile, but after 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 for the Pope to mediate the dispute through the offices of Cardinal Antonio Samoré his special envoy (See Papal mediation in the Beagle conflict
Papal mediation in the Beagle conflict
The Papal mediation in the Beagle conflict followed the failure of negotiations between Chile and Argentina, when, on 22 December 1978, the Argentinian Junta started Operation Soberanía, to invade Cape Horn and islands awarded to Chile by the Beagle Channel Arbitration...
).
On 9 January 1979 the Act of Montevideo was signed in Uruguay
Uruguay
Uruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area...
pledging both sides to a peaceful solution and a return to the military situation of early 1977. The conflict was still latent during the Falklands war and was resolved only after the fall of the Argentine military junta.
A number of prominent public officials in Chile still point to past Argentine treaty repudiations when referring to relations between the two neighbors.
Falklands War
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....
, Chile and Colombia became the only Latin American countries to abstain from voting in the TIAR
Tiar
The Tiar are scheduled caste, found in North India. They are also known as the Parihar.-History and origin:The word tiar is a corruption of the Sanskrit word thivara, which means a hunter. They were traditionally hunters, but with the greater deforestation of their environment, they are now mainly...
(as did also USA and Trinidad Tobago).
The Argentine government planned to seize the disputed Beagle Channel islands after the occupation of the Falkland Islands. Basilio Lami Dozo
Basilio Lami Dozo
Brigadier General Basilio Arturo Ignacio Lami Dozo was a member of the Argentine Air Force.He participated in the military dictatorship known as the National Reorganisation Process and, along with Leopoldo Fortunato Galtieri and Jorge Isaac Anaya, was a member of the Third Military Junta that...
former Chief of the Argentine Air Force
Argentine Air Force
The Argentine Air Force is the national aviation branch of the Armed Forces of the Argentine Republic. , it had 14,606 military and 6,854 civilian staff.-History:...
during the Falklands war disclosed that Leopoldo Galtieri
Leopoldo Galtieri
Leopoldo Fortunato Galtieri Castelli was an Argentine general and President of Argentina from December 22, 1981 to June 18, 1982, during the last military dictatorship . The death squad Intelligence Battalion 601 directly reported to him...
announced him that "[Chile] have to know what we are doing now, because they will be the next in turn. Also Óscar Camilión, the last Argentine Foreign Minister before the war (March 29, 1981 to December 11, 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."
Such preparations were public. On June 2, 1982 the newspaper La Prensa
La Prensa (Buenos Aires)
La Prensa is an Argentine daily newspaper.Based in Buenos Aires, it was founded on 18 October 1869 by José C. Paz. La Prensa ranked among the most widely circulated dailies in Argentina in subsequent decades, earning a reputation for conservatism and support for British interests in Argentina...
published an article by Manfred Schönfeld explaining what would follow Argentina's expected victory in the Falkland Islands: "The war will not be finished for us, because after the defeat of our enemies in the Falklands, they must be blown away from South Georgia, the South Sandwich Islands
South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands
South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands is a British overseas territory and overseas territory of the European Union in the southern Atlantic Ocean. It is a remote and inhospitable collection of islands, consisting of South Georgia and a chain of smaller islands, known as the South Sandwich...
, and all Argentine Austral archipelagos."
This intention was probably known by the Chilean government as the Chileans provided the United Kingdom with ‘limited, but significant information’ . The Chilean Connection is described in detail by Sir Lawrence Freedman in his book The Official History of the Falklands Campaign.
Post-Pinochet democratic governments have given greater support to the Argentine claim on the Falkland Islands.
Peace and Friendship Treaty
Strait of Magellan
The Strait of Magellan comprises a navigable sea route immediately south of mainland South America and north of Tierra del Fuego...
and over the possession of the Picton, Lennox and Nueva
Picton, Lennox and Nueva
Picton, Lennox and Nueva is a group of three islands on the extreme south of South America, in the Chilean commune of Cabo de Hornos in Antártica Chilena Province, Magallanes and Antártica Chilena Region...
islands and sea located south of Tierra del Fuego
Tierra del Fuego
Tierra del Fuego is an archipelago off the southernmost tip of the South American mainland, across the Strait of Magellan. The archipelago consists of a main island Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego divided between Chile and Argentina with an area of , and a group of smaller islands including Cape...
, granting the islands to Chile, navigation rights to both countries and the most part of the Exclusive Economic Zone
Exclusive Economic Zone
Under the law of the sea, an exclusive economic zone is a seazone over which a state has special rights over the exploration and use of marine resources, including production of energy from water and wind. It stretches from the seaward edge of the state's territorial sea out to 200 nautical...
eastwards of the Cape Horn-Meridian to Argentina. After that, other border disputes were resolved by peaceful means.
The 1984 treaty was succeeded by the Maipu Treaty of Integration and Cooperation (Tratado de Maipú de Integración y Cooperación) signed on October 30, 2009
Integration
Reynaldo Bignone
Reynaldo Benito Antonio Bignone is an Argentine general who served as dictatorial President of Argentina from July 1, 1982 to December 10, 1983. In 2010, he was sentenced to 25 years in prison for his role in the kidnappings, torture, and murders of the Dirty War.-Early career:Reynaldo Benito...
called for democratic elections in 1983 and Augusto Pinochet
Augusto Pinochet
Augusto José Ramón Pinochet Ugarte, more commonly known as Augusto Pinochet , was a Chilean army general and dictator who assumed power in a coup d'état on 11 September 1973...
of Chile in 1989. As a consequence militaristic tendencies faded in the Southern Cone
Southern Cone
Southern Cone is a geographic region composed of the southernmost areas of South America, south of the Tropic of Capricorn. Although geographically this includes part of Southern and Southeast of Brazil, in terms of political geography the Southern cone has traditionally comprised Argentina,...
. The Argentine presidents Carlos Menem
Carlos Menem
Carlos Saúl Menem is an Argentine politician who was President of Argentina from 1989 to 1999. He is currently an Argentine National Senator for La Rioja Province.-Early life:...
and Fernando de la Rúa
Fernando de la Rúa
Fernando de la Rúa is an Argentine politician. He was president of the country from December 10, 1999 to December 21, 2001 for the Alliance for Work, Justice and Education ....
had particularly good relations with Chile.
Border issues
In bilateral manner, both countries settled all the remaining disputes except Laguna del Desierto, which was decided by International Arbitration in 1994. The decision favoured Argentine claims.According to a 1998 negotiation held in Buenos Aires, a 50 km (31.1 mi) section of the boundary in the Southern Patagonian Ice Field
Southern Patagonian Ice Field
The Southern Patagonian Ice Field , located at the Southern Patagonic Andes between Argentina and Chile, is the second largest contiguous extrapolar extent of ice in the world...
is still pending of mapping and demarcation according to the limits already settled by the 1881 treaty. In 2006 president Néstor Kirchner
Néstor Kirchner
Néstor Carlos Kirchner was an Argentine politician who served as the 54th President of Argentina from 25 May 2003 until 10 December 2007. Previously, he was Governor of Santa Cruz Province since 10 December 1991. He briefly served as Secretary General of the Union of South American Nations ...
invited Chile to define the border, but Michelle Bachelet
Michelle Bachelet
Verónica Michelle Bachelet Jeria is a Social Democrat politician who was President of Chile from 11 March 2006 to 11 March 2010. She was the first woman president of her country...
's government left the invitation unanswered. The same year, the Chilean government sent a note to Argentina complaining about Argentine tourism maps that showed a normal boundary in the Southern Patagonian Icefield with most of the area belonging to Argentina. (map of the area)
Falkland Islands
The Falkland Islands are an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean, located about from the coast of mainland South America. The archipelago consists of East Falkland, West Falkland and 776 lesser islands. The capital, Stanley, is on East Falkland...
.
Geopolitics over Antarctica and the control of the passages between the south Atlantic and the south Pacific have led to the founding of cities and towns such as Ushuaia
Ushuaia
Ushuaia may refer to the following:*Ushuaia, a city in Argentina.**Ushuaia Department, an administrative division**Ushuaia River**Ushuaia International Airport**Colegio Nacional de Ushuaia, National School of Ushuaia....
and Puerto Williams
Puerto Williams
Puerto Williams is a Chilean port, located on Isla Navarino facing the Beagle Channel. It is the capital of the Chilean Antarctic Province, one of four provinces located in the Magellan and Chilean Antartica Region...
both claiming to be the southernmost cities in world.
Actually in Antarctica both countries, along with the United Kingdom, have research bases. The three nations claim the totality of Antarctic Peninsula
Antarctic Peninsula
The Antarctic Peninsula is the northernmost part of the mainland of Antarctica. It extends from a line between Cape Adams and a point on the mainland south of Eklund Islands....
.
Economy and energy
Trade between the two countries is made mostly over the mountain passes (see list) that have enough infrastructure for large scale trade.The trade balance shows a lot of asymmetry as of 2005 Chile is the 3rd export trading partner for Argentina, behind Brazil and the United States. Some well known import products from Argentina in Chile include cereals and meat that once caused the Meat riots
Meat riots
The Meat riots in Santiago, Chile in October 1905 were the earliest and one of the biggest riots to take place in Chile.-Background:The price of meat was kept artificially high by the government, by means of the combination of a special tariff applied to cattle imports from Argentina, in order to...
in Chile. More recently large amounts of Chilean capital have been invested in Argentina, especially in the retail market.
In 1996, Chile became an associated member of Mercosur
Mercosur
Mercosur or Mercosul is an economic and political agreement among Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay. Founded in 1991 by the Treaty of Asunción, which was later amended and updated by the 1994 Treaty of Ouro Preto. Its purpose is to promote free trade and the fluid movement of goods, people,...
, a regional trade agreement that Argentina and Brazil created in the 1990s. This associated membership does not mean full membership.
In 1997, Argentina and Chile signed a Mining Integration Agreement. In 2009 they gave the go-ahead for the $3-billion Pascua Lama
Pascua Lama
Pascua-Lama is an open pit mining project of gold, silver, copper and other minerals. Pascua Lama is located in the Andes mountains, south of Atacama, straddling the border between Chile and Argentina at an altitude of over 4,500 metres. Toronto-based Barrick Gold, the world's largest gold mining...
project to mine an ore
Ore
An ore is a type of rock that contains minerals with important elements including metals. The ores are extracted through mining; these are then refined to extract the valuable element....
body on the border of the two countries.
Gas
Argentine president Carlos MenemCarlos Menem
Carlos Saúl Menem is an Argentine politician who was President of Argentina from 1989 to 1999. He is currently an Argentine National Senator for La Rioja Province.-Early life:...
signed a natural gas
Natural gas
Natural gas is a naturally occurring gas mixture consisting primarily of methane, typically with 0–20% higher hydrocarbons . It is found associated with other hydrocarbon fuel, in coal beds, as methane clathrates, and is an important fuel source and a major feedstock for fertilizers.Most natural...
exportation treaty with Chilean president Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle
Eduardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle
Eduardo Alfredo Juan Bernardo Frei Ruiz-Tagle is a Chilean politician and civil engineer who was President of Chile from 1994 to 2000. He is currently Senator for Los Ríos and was President of the Senate from 2006 to 2008. He attempted a comeback as the candidate of the ruling Concertación...
in 1996. In 2005, President Néstor Kirchner
Néstor Kirchner
Néstor Carlos Kirchner was an Argentine politician who served as the 54th President of Argentina from 25 May 2003 until 10 December 2007. Previously, he was Governor of Santa Cruz Province since 10 December 1991. He briefly served as Secretary General of the Union of South American Nations ...
suspended the treaty due to a supply shortage experienced by Argentina. The situation in Argentina was partly resolved when Argentina increased its own imports from Bolivia
Bolivia
Bolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America...
, a country with no diplomatic relations with Chile since 1978. In the import contract signed with Bolivia it was specified that not even a drop of Bolivian gas could be sold to Chile from Argentina.
Sports
In 2003, Argentine AFAArgentine Football Association
The Argentine Football Association is the governing body of football in Argentina. It organises the Argentine football league and the Argentina national football team. It is based in Buenos Aires...
's president suggested that both countries launch a joint bid for the 2014 FIFA World Cup
2014 FIFA World Cup
The 2014 FIFA World Cup will be the 20th FIFA World Cup, an international association football tournament that will take place in Brazil from 12 June to 13 July 2014....
but was abandoned in favour of
a CONMEBOL
CONMEBOL
The South American Football Confederation , commonly known as CONMEBOL , is the continental governing body of association football in South America and it is one of FIFA's six continental confederations...
unified posture to allow the tournament be hosted in Brazil.
In 2009, both countries organized the Dakar Rally
Dakar Rally
The Dakar Rally is an annual rally raid type of off-road automobile race, organised by the Amaury Sport Organisation...
, the first time the competition goes out of Africa. The event repeated in 2010 and would be again in 2011
Technology
Argentina announced on 28 August 2009 the election of the Japanese/Brazilian ISDB-T digital televisionDigital television
Digital television is the transmission of audio and video by digital signals, in contrast to the analog signals used by analog TV...
standard with Chile following the same direction on 14 September.
Military integration
Chemical warfare
Chemical warfare involves using the toxic properties of chemical substances as weapons. This type of warfare is distinct from Nuclear warfare and Biological warfare, which together make up NBC, the military acronym for Nuclear, Biological, and Chemical...
or biological
Biological warfare
Biological warfare is the use of biological toxins or infectious agents such as bacteria, viruses, and fungi with intent to kill or incapacitate humans, animals or plants as an act of war...
weapons.
Joint exercises were established on an annual basis in the three armed forces alternately in Argentina and Chile territory. An example of such manoeuvres is the Patrulla Antártica Naval Combinada (Joint Antarctic Naval Patrol) performed by both Navies to guarantee safety to all touristic and scientific ships that are in transit within the Antarctic Peninsula
Antarctic Peninsula
The Antarctic Peninsula is the northernmost part of the mainland of Antarctica. It extends from a line between Cape Adams and a point on the mainland south of Eklund Islands....
.
Both nations are highly involved in UN peacekeeping
Peacekeeping
Peacekeeping is an activity that aims to create the conditions for lasting peace. It is distinguished from both peacebuilding and peacemaking....
missions. UNFICYP in Cyprus
Cyprus
Cyprus , officially the Republic of Cyprus , is a Eurasian island country, member of the European Union, in the Eastern Mediterranean, east of Greece, south of Turkey, west of Syria and north of Egypt. It is the third largest island in the Mediterranean Sea.The earliest known human activity on the...
was a precedent where Chilean troops are embedded in the Argentine contingent. They played a key role together at MINUSTAH in Haiti
Haiti
Haiti , officially the Republic of Haiti , is a Caribbean country. It occupies the western, smaller portion of the island of Hispaniola, in the Greater Antillean archipelago, which it shares with the Dominican Republic. Ayiti was the indigenous Taíno or Amerindian name for the island...
(Video Haiti) and in 2005 they began the formation of a joint force for future United Nations mandates. Named Cruz del Sur (Crux
Crux
Crux is the smallest of the 88 modern constellations, but is one of the most distinctive. Its name is Latin for cross, and it is dominated by a cross-shaped asterism that is commonly known as the Southern Cross.-Visibility:...
), the new force began assembly in 2008 with headquarters alternately on each country every year.
In 2005, while the Argentine Navy school ship ARA Libertad
ARA Libertad (Q-2)
ARA Libertad is a tall ship which serves as a school ship in the Argentine Navy. She was built in the 1950s at the Río Santiago Shipyard near La Plata, Argentina...
was under overhaul, Argentine cadets were invited to complete their graduation on the Chilean Navy
Chilean Navy
-Independence Wars of Chile and Peru :The Chilean Navy dates back to 1817. A year before, following the Battle of Chacabuco, General Bernardo O'Higgins prophetically declared "this victory and another hundred shall be of no significance if we do not gain control of the sea".This led to the...
school ship Esmeralda
Esmeralda (BE-43)
Esmeralda is a steel-hulled four-masted barquentine tall ship of the Chilean Navy, currently the second tallest and longest sailing ship in the world.- Construction :The ship is the sixth to carry the name Esmeralda...
and in another gesture of confidence, on 24 June 2007, a Gendarmeria Nacional Argentina (Border Guard) patrol was given permission to enter Chile to rescue tourists after their bus became trapped in snow.
Present
On 30 October 2009 presidents Michelle Bachelet and Cristina Fernández de KirchnerCristina Fernández de Kirchner
Cristina Elisabet Fernández de Kirchner , commonly known as Cristina Fernández or Cristina Kirchner is the 55th and current President of Argentina and the widow of former President Néstor Kirchner. She is Argentina's first elected female president, and the second female president ever to serve...
signed the Maipu Treaty of Integration and Cooperation ( ) http://chileabroad.gov.cl/argentina/files/2009/11/tratado-de-maipu-de-integracion-y-cooperacion.doc which establish the basis for the future relationship between the two countries.
On 13 March 2010 after the Chilean earthquake
2010 Chile earthquake
The 2010 Chile earthquake occurred off the coast of central Chile on Saturday, 27 February 2010, at 03:34 local time , having a magnitude of 8.8 on the moment magnitude scale, with intense shaking lasting for about three minutes. It ranks as the sixth largest earthquake ever to be recorded by a...
the benefit concert Argentina Abraza Chile (Argentina Hugs Chile) is done at Buenos Aires and the Argentine Air Force Mobile Field Hospital
Argentine Air Force Mobile Field Hospital
The Argentine Air Force Mobile Field Hospital is a field hospital operated by the Argentine Air Force. It is one of three health centers of its kind worldwide .- Description :...
is deployed to Curicó
Curicó
Curicó , meaning "Black Waters" in Mapudungun , is the capital city of the Curicó Province, part of the Maule Region in Chile's central valley....
.
On 8 April 2010 the new Chilean president Sebastián Piñera
Sebastián Piñera
Miguel Juan Sebastián Piñera Echenique is a Chilean businessman and politician. He was elected President of Chile in January 2010, taking office in March 2010.- Education :...
on his first trip abroad visited Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
where he thanked president Cristina Fernández for the help received
Humanitarian response to the 2010 Chile earthquake
The Humanitarian response to the 2010 Chile earthquake included national governments, charitable and for-profit organizations from around the world which began coordinating humanitarian aid designed to help the Chilean people....
due the earthquake occurred last February. He also stated his commitment to a deeper integration
On June 2010 (as in 2009 and years before ) Chile supported again the Argentina position on the United Nations Special Committee on Decolonization
Special Committee on Decolonization
The Special Committee on Decolonization was created in 1961 by the General Assembly of the United Nations with the purpose of monitoring implementation of the Declaration on the Granting of Independence to Colonial Countries and Peoples...
calling for direct negotiations between Argentina and the United Kingdom about the Falklands Islands dispute.
In September 2010 the CONARE (the Argentine National Refugee Commission, dependent of the Interior Ministry) gave asylum to Chilean citizen Galvarino Apablaza, who lives in Argentina married with journalist Paula Chain and have three Argentine-born childs. Chain works for the Argentine Government press office since 2009. Apablaza is accused of being involved with the murder of Chilean Senator Jaime Guzmán
Jaime Guzmán
Jaime Jorge Guzmán Errázuriz was a Chilean lawyer and senator, member and doctrinal founder of the conservative Independent Democrat Union party. He opposed Marxist President Salvador Allende and later became a close advisor to dictator Augusto Pinochet. A professor of Constitutional Law, he...
in 1991, during the government of Patricio Aylwin
Patricio Aylwin
Patricio Aylwin Azócar was the first president of Chile after its return to democratic rule in 1990, following the military dictatorship of General Augusto Pinochet.- Early life :...
, as well as the kidnapping of the son of one of the owners of El Mercurio
El Mercurio
El Mercurio is a conservative Chilean newspaper with editions in Valparaíso and Santiago. Its Santiago edition is considered the country's paper-of-record and its Valparaíso edition is the oldest daily in the Spanish language currently in circulation. El Mercurio is owned by El Mercurio S.A.P...
newspaper. The asylum is rejected by all Chilean political forces, and by the Argentine political opposition forces. Some Argentine media and journalists pointed out that the Argentine government ignored a ruling of the Argentine Supreme Court of Justice allowing the extradition of Apablaza. The Chilean's lawyer of the State, Gustavo Gené, pointed out that there was no questioning of the Chilean legal system by the Argentine Commission, and that the reasons for granting political asylum were only "humanitarian".
On October 28, 2010 president Sebastian Piñera
Sebastián Piñera
Miguel Juan Sebastián Piñera Echenique is a Chilean businessman and politician. He was elected President of Chile in January 2010, taking office in March 2010.- Education :...
traveled to Buenos Aires to give their condolences for Néstor Kirchner
Néstor Kirchner
Néstor Carlos Kirchner was an Argentine politician who served as the 54th President of Argentina from 25 May 2003 until 10 December 2007. Previously, he was Governor of Santa Cruz Province since 10 December 1991. He briefly served as Secretary General of the Union of South American Nations ...
death
On December 2010, the joint peacekeeping force Cruz del Sur will be presented to the UN
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
. However, the demarcation of the limit in Campo de Hielo Sur
Southern Patagonian Ice Field
The Southern Patagonian Ice Field , located at the Southern Patagonic Andes between Argentina and Chile, is the second largest contiguous extrapolar extent of ice in the world...
(which historically Chileans had considered as a closed matter) remains an unresolved issue of controversy between these two nations.
See also
- ABC countriesABC countriesABC countries, or ABC Powers, is a term sometimes used to describe the South American countries of Argentina, Brazil and Chile, which are seen as three of the most powerful and wealthy countries in South America...
- Foreign relations of ArgentinaForeign relations of ArgentinaThis article deals with the diplomatic affairs, foreign policy and international relations of Argentina.At the political level, these matters are officially handled by the Ministry of Foreign Relations, also known as the Cancillería, which answers to the President...
- Foreign relations of ChileForeign relations of ChileSince its return to democracy in 1990, Chile has been an active participant in the international political arena. Chile assumed a two-year non-permanent position on the UN Security Council in January 2003 and is an active member of the UN family of agencies, serving as a member of the Commission on...