Vivid memories of danger at sea

The task force was "a remarkable achievement"

By Mark Davies BBC News Online political reporter

It was the meeting which led to the British task force setting sail for the Falkland Islands.

In the prime minister's room at the House of Commons just over 20 years ago, UK defence secretary John Nott was briefing an alarmed Margaret Thatcher on the impending Argentine invasion.

Sir John Nott: Doubts were overcome

When the chief of the naval staff, Sir Henry Leach, joined the meeting, he was optimistic about the prospect of preparing the task force.

Both the prime minister and Nott were impressed, though Nott - now Sir John - admits to a certain amount of scepticism as to whether it really could be achieved.

	Twenty years on A unique collaboration between BBC News Online and BBC Mundo looks at the story from both sides of the conflict Fight for the Falklands

Within days, those doubts were largely dispelled, the task force was at sea, "a remarkable achievement" in Sir John's view.

The former defence secretary, who retired from politics in 1983 to concentrate on his business career, is happy to talk about his memories of the Falklands conflict at his home in west London.

Engaging

That is, of course, partly because he has timed the release of his memoirs - called "Here Today, Gone Tomorrow" - with the 20th anniversary of the war.

But he is engaging and frank, nothing like the slightly sour image which was created by the infamous spat with the late Sir Robin Day which gave him the title for his book.

It was only about three or four weeks later that the Americans came out openly and fully on our side

Sir John Nott

Sir John, unhappy with the BBC interviewer's questioning during an interview - Sir Robin had described him as a "here today, gone tomorrow" minister -, removed his microphone and walked off the set.

He says he hadn't realised that the interview was being broadcast live and is unworried by the regular repetition of the incident ever since.

"He was just looking, as interviewers do, to create trouble," says Sir John.

"And I was thinking of my farm, and the harvest and the green fields of England and half my brain was saying, 'why do I have to sit here listening to all this ridiculous questioning'... I just got bored with it and just walked out.

"I have to be grateful to the BBC for giving me the title of my book."

Suez fear

Sir John has vivid memories of the dark days of the war itself, and of the meeting which led to the task force setting sail.

He says his initial doubts over the viability of the mission, coupled with "negative" briefings from the Ministry of Defence, were gradually overcome and he had what he calls "limited confidence" in the mission.

Sir John as he was in 1982

The credit for the task force lay with Sir Henry and the navy as a whole, "which always did live in a state of great readiness", he says.

He admits that he had feared a repeat of the Suez crisis, while he is also critical of the way in which the Americans reacted when the crisis first blew up.

The US Defense Department, led by Caspar Weinberger, had been "absolutely wonderful," but the reaction of the White House was less helpful, says Sir John.

The then President, Ronald Reagan, was "a west coast American brought up to look towards the Pacific and south to the Americas". Europe, says Sir John, was seen as "a strange world".

Surrender

"So they were deeply concerned at the collapse of their South American policy," he continues. "They had done deals with the Latin American and the South American dictators, particularly the anti-communist ones like Galtieri."

There was a great army of people who tried to somehow blame the war on us

Sir John Nott

For the first few weeks of the crisis, the Americans "were simply not prepared to tilt one way or the other," pressing for a negotiated settlement which Sir John says would have been regarded as a surrender in the UK.

"It was only about three or four weeks later that the Americans came out openly and fully on our side," he says.

"So I can't say that they were deliberately unhelpful but they certainly weren't particularly on our side. They were sitting on the fence trying to bring about negotiated settlement."

Sir John rejects criticism of the war and of the infamous sinking of the Argentine ship, the General Belgrano.

"We didn't start the war," he says. "There was a great army of people who tried to somehow blame the war on us. (But) we were negotiating peacefully with the Argentinians."

Spying

He says the decision to sink the Belgrano came against the background of a British task force of 33,000 men and woman at sea in 100 ships, facing the threat of attack from the Argentine navy and air force.

There were other problems too.

"We knew the Russians were spying on us," Sir John says. "We knew that civil aircraft were flying between Brazil and the west coast of Africa reporting back the position of the fleet.

"And when we intercepted signals to say that their aircraft carrier and the Belgrano were getting in circling movement on the fleet we didn't have any choice but to give orders to sink both ships or any Argentine ship.

"It was a terrible tragedy. I was shocked when all those Argentinian soldiers died. It was terrible really."

But, he says, after that incident the Argentine navy never put to sea again.

"If we had had to contend against not only the very brave Argentine pilots but against the Argentine navy it would have been very much more difficult."

Sir John's autobiography, Here Today, Gone Tomorrow, is published by Politicos Publishing.