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Costa Méndez's remarks may have been a bid for one last peace-keeping effort, possibly under the aegis of the U.N. and its Secretary-General, Javier Pérez de Cuellar. Even though British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher had earlier ruled out the possibility of any U.N.-sponsored peace effort, British Foreign Secretary Francis Pym announced in London that he would be returning to the U.S., first to consult with Secretary of State Haig and then to visit the U.N. in Manhattan. But Pym also had tough words for Costa Méndez: "Let him put his money where his mouth is. All the junta has to do is officially apply for British transit permission for troops to be withdrawn [from the islands]."
Like many Britons, Pym was pleased at the long-expected news that the U.S., which had tried for weeks to mediate the Falklands dispute, had officially moved to support its staunchest ally. Said Pym: "To have the world's most powerful state on our side must make Argentina see that aggression cannot pay. The British people are deeply grateful to the U.S., and especially to Mr. Haig for his remarkable efforts."
Despite the last-minute diplomatic activity, the air strikes confirmed explosively that time had finally run out in the Falklands. Hours before the British total blockade of the disputed islands went into effect, the Argentines had announced a reciprocal blockade. Any airplane or ship from either country caught within 200 miles of the Falklands was liable to be attacked. Argentina's intention to carry the fight to the British fleet meant that a major air or sea battle might start at any moment.
British warships led by the aircraft carriers Hermes and Invincible had nosed into position around the Falklands. The big ships, guarded by antisubmarine frigates and nuclear-powered hunter submarines, were as close as 90 miles to shore, while destroyers interposed themselves between the islands and the mainland to set up a radar "picket" about 100 miles west of the Falklands. Fighting 40-to-50-m.p.h. winds that whipped the frigid seas into 40-ft. waves—momentarily leaving the propellers of the lighter frigates spinning in mid-air—the British task force had begun an effort to choke off supplies to the occupiers, while Royal Marine commandos prepared for hit-and-run raids to demoralize the Argentine troops. There were unconfirmed reports that British commando units were already ashore in the archipelago, gathering intelligence and possibly preparing for a full-scale British invasion. The Argentine occupying force on the islands, according to Argentina's military governor of the Falklands, General Mario Benjamin Menéndez, was in a state of "total alert," expecting an assault that could come, in Menéndez's words, "at any minute." The innocent bystanders of the Falklands dispute, the 1,800 English-speaking residents of the islands, had mostly evacuated to the countryside or taken the opportunity to leave the islands.
Compounding the tension were concerns about what role, if any, the Soviets might play if serious fighting