Relationship dossier
Argentina
Ghana
Relationship assessment
A serious 2012 dispute over Argentina’s naval vessel was resolved following an international tribunal’s release order.
Argentina toward Ghana
-20Argentina brought Ghana before the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea over the detention of its naval ship ARA Libertad, seeking the vessel’s release.
Ghana toward Argentina
-20Ghanaian authorities detained Argentina’s naval training ship ARA Libertad in 2012. Ghana released the vessel after the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea ordered its release.
Overall relationship
-15The 2012 detention and legal dispute are a significant adversarial feature of Argentina–Ghana relations. The ship’s release resolved that episode, while the scope and durability of other bilateral cooperation remain unclear.
How to read these scores
Scores are rough judgments, not objective measurements or current verification. Directional scores describe government policy and conduct, not public opinion. The overall score is an independent estimate, never an average.
- −100
- Extreme sustained hostility
- −50
- Substantially adversarial
- 0
- Mixed or neutral, supported by knowledge
- +50
- Substantially cooperative
- +100
- Exceptionally close sustained partnership
“Not assessed” means there is no recorded score. Pair existence makes no claim about diplomatic recognition or established relations.
Relationship context
Overview
Argentina and Ghana experienced a serious bilateral legal dispute in 2012 after Ghanaian authorities detained Argentina’s naval training ship ARA Libertad. Argentina brought the matter before the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, which ordered the ship’s release; Ghana subsequently released it. The dispute supports a mildly adversarial assessment, though the broader scope of bilateral cooperation is unclear.
Areas of tension
- Ghana’s detention of ARA Libertad and the resulting dispute over the vessel’s immunity and release.
Key developments
Ghanaian authorities detained Argentina’s naval training ship ARA Libertad.
The International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea ordered Ghana to release ARA Libertad.
Ghana released ARA Libertad following the tribunal’s order.
Major uncertainties
- The extent of bilateral cooperation outside the 2012 ship dispute is unclear.
- The longer-term diplomatic effects of the dispute are uncertain.