Amidst diplomatic tensions, UK Royal Navy plans to send warship to Falklands (AKA the Malvinas)

(PHOTO: Foreign UK Secretary William Hague & the UK Dauntless/TELEGRAPH) One of the UK Royal Navy’s most powerful new warships, the HMS Dauntless, is to be sent to patrol the South Atlantic including the Falkland Islands (AKA the Malvinas Islands) after the latest diplomatic tensions between Buenos Aires and London, the UK's Royal Navy Senior Press Officer confirmed to the BuenosAiresHerald.com.

The HMS Dauntless will be deployed on her maiden mission to the South Atlantic at the end of March, just days before the 30th anniversary of the Malvinas War. Sister ship HMS Daring has already been sent to the Gulf for her first mission amid heightened tensions with Iran over threats by Tehran to block a busy shipping lane.

However the British Ministry of Defence has said the deployment was long planned to replace frigate HMS Montrose and not a riposte to increased tensions over the sovereignty of the islands.

"The Royal Navy has had a continuous presence in the South Atlantic for many years. The deployment of HMS DAUNTLESS to the South Atlantic has been long planned, is entirely routine and replaces another ship on patrol," UK's Royal Navy Senior Press Office Simon Smith stressed.

Although the spokesman rejected suggestions the decision to send the ultra-modern destroyer to the region represented an escalation of the UK's position, the sending comes amid a diplomatic war of words over renewed Argentine claims of sovereignty, and with UK Prime Minister David Cameron accusing Argentina of "colonialism".

With crews of 180, the HMS Dauntless is part of the new 45s type vessels the Royal Navy is to deploy on international waters.

It was built with a futuristic design that makes it difficult to detect using radar. It is armed with high-tech Sea Viper anti-air missiles and can carry 60 troops.
 
They also have a large flight deck which can accommodate helicopters the size of a Chinook as well as take on board 700 people in the case of a civilian evacuation.

---This article originally appeared in the 1/31/12 edition of the Buenos Aires Herald.