UN may call for Falklands talks

The United Nations Security Council is expected to pass a resolution calling on UN Secretary-General Javier Perez de Cuellar to renew his efforts to seek a peaceful settlement of the Falklands crisis, Monitor correspondent Louis Wiznitzer writes.

It is expected to be drafted in terms so vague that it would put no constraints on Argentina and Britain, and would therefore not run into a British veto or a pro-Argentine Soviet veto.

Argentina called on the Security Council Tuesday to take immediate measures to halt fighting with Britain and start negotiations. Foreign Minister Nicanor Costa Mendez insisted, however, that Argentina would not, despite Britain's offensive, accept terms or conditions that impaired its ''unquestionable rights.''

If passed, a resolution calling on the secretary-general to resume mediation efforts would enable the Council to save face and to escape criticism for having done nothing.

Whether such a mandate will help solve the crisis is very much open to question, according to analysts here. Impartial observers feel it may well hurt Mr. Perez de Cuellar's chances to mediate between Argentina and Britain in the future, if both governments return to the negotiating table.