The Argentine invasion and British response are treated as a state of war rather than a policing action. The Total Exclusion Zone warned all shipping, but an armed national warship remained a military target beyond it. Merchant shipping raised harder legal questions than a national warship during hostilities. Belgrano's weapons and manoeuvre near the zone therefore mattered more than the popular argument that its precise heading made it harmless.
Chapter · 16:08-18:00
Belgrano, the exclusion zone, and legitimate warship targets
The sinking of General Belgrano broke the coordinated plan, while the ship's position outside the exclusion zone did not remove its status as an enemy warship.