Chilean diplomacy has just laid bare its moral and strategic fracture regarding the South Atlantic . Following the political upheaval unleashed by the declarations of Defense Minister Fernando Barros Tocornal —who described Great Britain as a "friendly country," recognized its "de facto sovereignty," and conditioned any solution on the "will" of the occupiers— President José Antonio Kast's government attempted a clumsy damage control effort that ultimately confirmed the worst: La Moneda maintains a schizophrenic foreign policy that formally supports Argentine rights in international forums, but endorses, protects, and promotes logistical and commercial support for the British occupation from the docks of Punta Arenas.

The official position was established this morning by the Undersecretary of the Interior, Máximo Pavez , and ratified in Congress by Foreign Minister Francisco Pérez Mackenna . Far from halting the commercial advance in Magallanes, the Argentine government has decided to artificially separate state policy from port business: while support for Argentine sovereignty under international law is proclaimed on the microphones, on the docks the economic consolidation of the British colonial enclave is given the green light.

The doctrine of separation: "Diplomatic support, separate business"

The line of argument presented by Pavez exposed the ease with which Santiago intends to evade its bilateral and regional commitments:

"Since 1992, Chile has ratified its support for Argentina's claim to the Malvina Islands and that this must be pursued in accordance with international law, peacefully (...) The Government's position is that our citizens can carry out any economic and commercial activity from our ports as long as they comply with current legislation , " the Chilean undersecretary stated.

This definition enshrines an unacceptable fallacy for the Argentine Republic. There is no possible separation between diplomacy and logistics in an area under disputed sovereignty and colonial militarization. Supplying the usurped archipelago with food, timber, cement, spare parts, and liquefied gas is not a neutral act of civil commerce: it is materially consolidating the British occupation and providing auxiliary infrastructure for the offshore oil exploitation of the Sea Lion project.

By asserting that Chilean private entities have the right to trade freely with the islands, the Kast government effectively disregards the commitment made in the 2011 Mercosur Declaration, which obligates member and associated states not to provide support or port facilitation to the enclave . Even worse, it obliterates the joint document signed by Kast himself and Javier Milei at La Moneda Palace on September 3rd, in which Argentina stated that it would value Chile's efforts to "prevent the consolidation of unilateral illegal logistical activities in the disputed area."

The parliamentary choir and the Magellanic business

The position taken by the Chilean government found an immediate echo in the Chilean Congress, where the defense of colonial revenues superseded any consideration of regional brotherhood. During Tuesday's session in the Senate, Karim Bianchi , the legislator for Magallanes, openly defended the trade link with the islands, questioning Buenos Aires's attempt to hinder British presence in the region.

"We can have a vision, a collaboration, claim the Argentine cause, but that has nothing to do with Magallanes seeking to do business with other countries , " the senator fired back, defining the colonial occupation simply as "another country."

Bianchi's words and the inaction of the Presidential Palace coincided with the conclusion of two days of business meetings at the Cabo de Hornos Hotel. There, 53 Magallanes-based companies—including Distribuidora Tío Rico, Carnes Natales, Embotelladora Andina, Corcoran, and Ferretería Bolt—held direct meetings with 28 corporations and delegates from the Malvina Islands Development Corporation (FIDC) to finalize supply contracts for the Chilean shipping company's vessel, Easter Island , whose maiden voyage under the Chilean flag is scheduled for November.

The final break

The Kast government 's declaration puts an end to diplomatic niceties. For Chile, Argentina's claim to the Malvina Islands is merely a UN declaration signed on diplomatic papers, but one that should not hinder the profits of its businesses or impede Punta Arenas's aspiration to capture the millions of dollars that Montevideo has been reaping for years.

To call this "state policy respectful of international law" is a mockery. Providing logistical support to the invader is subsidizing plunder . If Chile has formally decided that its ports and ships will serve as the economic and logistical rearguard for the Mount Pleasant military enclave, the Argentine Republic must act accordingly: apply the full force of the law to the companies involved, monitor the eastern mouth of the Strait of Magellan with units from the Southern Naval Area, and put an end to the fiction of regional integration that is proclaimed at presidential summits and betrayed at the loading docks.

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