From Forbes: Argentina, The World's Worst Sovereign Deadbeat

http://www.forbes.com/sites/realspin/2012/11/30/dont-cry-for-argentina-the-worlds-worst-sovereign-deadbeat/

Don't Cry For Argentina, The World's Worst Sovereign Deadbeat

By Julian Ku

Last month, a court in Ghana detained the ARA Libertad, an Argentine naval training vessel, until Argentina guarantees repayment for a portion of its defaulted government debt.  This minor legal action has now exploded into an international incident.  Argentina has accused Ghana of violating international treaties, sought the intervention of the U.N. Security Council, and suggested that the Ghana courts are facilitating “an act of piracy against a sovereign country by greedy “vulture funds.”  They have also recently sought action by the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea.

But Argentina’s bluster obscures the weakness of their legal position.  The Ghana court’s well-reasoned and thoughtful decision is completely consistent with international law and should be lauded for forcing Argentina to face accountability for its financial impunity.