Margaret Thatcher s Long History Of Foreign Affairs

Margaret Thatcher’s long history of foreign affairs began in 1979 with the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. Thatcher personally condemned the invasion. She convinced various British athletes that were to compete in the 1980 Moscow Olympics to boycott the games. This action was very much in line with the tenants of liberalism, which includes fighting for liberty and equality. Thatcher provided weak support to then President of the United Sates Jimmy Carter who attempted to punish the Soviet Union with various economic sanctions. Thatcher distrusted Communism as a whole (as a liberal you hope for positive peace, Communism was not very effective at providing a lack of war occurring, so Thatcher ultimately opposed Communism all together) and†¦show more content†¦Thatcher then boldly tripled the United Kingdom’s nuclear forces in response. This move could be seen as contradicting the tenants of Liberalism. In 19982, the ruling military junta in Argentina ordered an i nvasion of the British Falkland Islands and in turn triggered the Falkland’s War. This moment was one of the most defining of Margaret Thatcher’s magnificent political career. Thatcher herself set up and was chairperson of a small war cabinet that attempted to take charge of the conduct of Britain during the war. Thatcher authorized a naval task force to retake the Falkland Islands. Eventually, thanks to Thatcher’s actions. Argentina surrendered and the operation was considered an overall success. This is a prime example of a deviation of Thatcher’s from her liberal beliefs. Even though states do not always agree on everything, such a bold move, involving going to war is not in line with the central tenants of liberalism. While some claimed that Thatcher neglected the defense of the Falkland Islands (as a liberal one must not neglect their state holdings, a prime example of neglect of this kind was the Falkland Islands) that eventually lead to the war, th e majority considered her a highly capable war leader. Luckily for Thatcher, the economy recovered in the beginning of 1982, which lead to a divided opposition and contributed largely to Thatcher’s reelection in the year 1983. This shows that Thatcher was committed to liberal politics in her