Word: argentina
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...distant thundering explosions are vaguely reminiscent of the noise that kept residents on edge two years ago as British troops advanced across the barren hills to retake the Falkland Islands from Argentina. But these are not the sounds of war. Since last fall almost 700 men have been working up to 14 hours a day blasting through rock at Mount Pleasant, a bleak stretch of high ground 25 miles southwest of Port Stanley, the capital. They are building a new British military base with an 8,500-ft. runway that will be able to accommodate large military aircraft...
...airstrip will serve as visible evidence of Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's determination to retain the windswept South Atlantic archipelago, which is 8,000 miles from Britain and only 400 miles from Argentina. When the base is completed next year, Royal Air Force TriStar jets will be able to reach the Falklands from Ascension Island, a British possession in the Atlantic midway between Britain and the Falklands, in 8½ hours. Now the quickest flight from Ascension is a twelve-hour trip in turboprop C-130 Hercules cargo aircraft that have to be refueled in midair. More important...
Although Britain and Argentina have cautiously begun to explore the possibility of resuming diplomatic ties and trade, the Thatcher government insists that the islands' sovereignty will never be discussed. The Falklanders, who used to be able to travel to Argentina to buy supplies or obtain health care, take their isolation in stride, even if it means a continuing decline in their living standard. For British taxpayers, however, the price remains high. Defense of the islands is now costing $874 million a year, or $467,000 an islander. -By John Kohan. Reported by Gavin Scott/Port Stanley
American bankers, who believe that Argentina owes around $46 billion, are professing little concern over the country's bookkeeping mess. "Each bank knows exactly what it is owed," said one New York moneyman. He added, "You've got a lot of people doing the job for the first time down there, and it will just take a while to sort out." Bankers point out that Venezuela (estimated debt: $34 billion) also has untidy bookkeeping, but Mexico ($85 billion) and Brazil ($96 billion) have much better records...
Last week some unexpected details of Argentina's eleventh-hour rescue became known. It was revealed that officials of the U.S. Federal Reserve assured private lenders that the $100 million they contributed to the bailout would be repaid. The Federal Reserve told banks that Argentina had more than that amount on deposit with it and that those funds would be used to pay off the loan. Given that indirect guarantee, the private banks charged an interest rate that was only one-eighth of a percentage point more than what they charge one another on loans...