The purpose of this book is to give an accurate and scholarly assessment of a major international crisis, and to contribute to public understanding of the decisions and processes that brought about the crisis. Calvert deals with the nature and history of the Falkland Islands, the grounds for the competing claims, the political background and events in both Argentina and Britain that led up to the crisis, and the unfolding events of the crisis itself, in its political, diplomatic and military aspects. He concludes with a substantial assessment of the impact of the crisis on international politics.