[Old news but new documents]
[Also germane for its Cold War/War on Terrorism parallels]
Financial Times; August 21 2002
US knew about Argentina rights abuses
By Thomas Catán in Buenos Aires
The US government knew of tens of thousands of human rights abuses committed during Argentina's last military dictatorship, even as it continued to co-operate with the regime, according to documents released on Tuesday.
The US State Department released thousands of declassified documents relating to the 1976-83 military dictatorship, following a promise to the families of the "disappeared" by ex-secretary of state, Madeleine Albright.
The documents are also likely to prove a blow to Argentina's former dictator, Leopoldo Galtieri, who was arrested last month and charged with the disappearance of a dozen former guerrillas in 1980. One US document shows that Battalion 601 - a death squad thought to have been responsible for torturing and killing thousands of Argentines - came under the direct command of Mr Galtieri.
The documents released on Tuesday show that the US embassy painstakingly documented some 10,000 human rights violations starting in 1977. In most cases, the victims were never seen again. A full list of those cases was sent by the US embassy to Washington in June 1979.
Mr Galtieri was so convinced that the US would back his regime that he felt confident enough to invade the British-held Falkland Islands in 1982. The US viewed Argentina's military junta as a reliable partner in its efforts to stop socialist governments from taking power in Latin America during the Cold War.
The Argentine government documented 8,000 victims of the last military dictatorship, while human rights organisations put the figure as high as 30,000. The new documentation could provide clues to the fates of Argentines who vanished during the military rule.
"The documents provide clues to the fate of 'disappeared' citizens in Argentina by an unchecked security apparatus, and tell the story of a massive and indiscriminate counter-insurgency campaign carried out by the military dictatorship," said Carlos Osorio, director of the National Security Archive at George Washington University.
The documents also show the co-operation between security forces in Argentina and Brazil through illegal cross border detentions, as well as with other South American intelligence services, Mr Osorio said.