Lucio García del Solar

Lucio García del Solar (1922–2010) combined a long diplomatic career with sustained work on the Falklands/Malvinas dispute. He studied international relations in Paris and headed Argentina's UN mission as chargé d'affaires between 1962 and 1966. The Argentine foreign ministry credits him with a central negotiating role in General Assembly Resolution 2065 of December 1965. That resolution recognized a sovereignty dispute between Argentina and Britain and called for negotiations taking account of the islanders' interests; it did not award sovereignty to either state. ^{1, 2}

His Washington embassy, from 1982 to 1986, began after the Falklands/Malvinas War and continued through Argentina's return to elected government. In a July 1983 meeting with Assistant Secretary Langhorne Motley before the transition, García del Solar sought American backing for another UN resolution and objected to the expansion of the islands' airport. He also asked for help over British restrictions affecting Argentina's IMF financing, explaining how military opposition to concessions complicated the debt negotiations. ^{1, 3}

They also disagreed over human rights certification for American military assistance. García del Solar argued that a favorable gesture would matter to the departing armed forces; Motley emphasized Congress, the disappeared, and the regional military balance. ³

García del Solar later served as special representative in the 1989–90 negotiations to normalize relations with Britain and chaired the foreign ministry's senior ambassadors' council. His other assignments included the Soviet Union and UNESCO, where he served from 2000 to 2002. He also wrote on foreign affairs and participated in the Radical Civic Union's foreign relations commission. ¹