Argentina’s President Javier Milei has renewed his country’s claim to the Falkland Islands, warning that oil companies operating around the disputed territory could face sanctions.
His televised national address came as tensions over the British overseas territory intensified after US President Donald Trump suggested Washington might not support the UK in a future conflict over the islands.
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“I want to be absolutely clear: the Falklands are Argentinian, historically and legally,” Mr Milei said.
“There is no argument to be made. They form part of Argentine territory.”
He said the UK was confronting “multiple crises on multiple fronts” and announced plans to sign decrees imposing sanctions on companies involved in oil production in the area.
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Mr Milei singled out the Sea Lion oilfield, owned by an Israeli and a British company and expected to begin production in 2028, describing it as a “clear and present danger” to Argentina’s claims.
“If we do not act swiftly in the coming months, they will have the material capacity to reach the oil beneath our sea,” he said.
“That is something that has never happened before,” he added.
The speech came as Mr Milei’s approval ratings continued to fall, with the president facing re-election in just over a year.
Polling indicates that only about 34% of Argentines back his sweeping austerity and deregulation programme.
As he announced plans for a naval base in Tierre del Fuego in southern Argentina, Mr Milei said Mr Trump and the US were “assessing their historical position” on the Falkland Islands.
Donald Trump said the US is reviewing its position on the Falkland Islands
In Argentina, the South Atlantic archipelago is known as Las Malvinas.
During a 2013 referendum, Falkland Islanders voted overwhelmingly to retain their status as a British overseas territory. The result was 99.8% in favour, with only three votes against.
British Defence Secretary Wes Streeting said today that the Falkland Islands “are British” and described the UK’s commitment to them as “absolute and unshakeable”.
“The Falklands are British because Falkland Islanders choose to be British,” Mr Streeting wrote on social media.
Mr Trump’s announcement on Monday that Washington was reviewing its position came amid reports that the US was threatening to challenge Britain’s sovereignty unless it increased defence spending.
In an interview yesterday with the British network GB News, Mr Trump criticised the UK’s limited military support for his war with Iran and declined to say whether he would stand behind Britain in a potential new confrontation with Argentina.
“The last war in 1982 was a long time ago,” he said.
“The Falklands issue serves Trump’s purpose of pressuring the United Kingdom to meet his demands on NATO funding and cooperation in the war in Iran,” said Tomas Mugica, director of the Center for International Studies at the Catholic University of Argentina.
Mr Milei portrayed Washington’s review as confirmation that his own policies and support for the Trump administration were bearing fruit.
“The United States is considering this change of position because it knows that Argentina has a reliable partner,” he said.
Sarah Rogers, a senior US State Department official, posted on X that “exciting things are happening in the Western Hemisphere”, alongside a photograph of herself with Mr Milei before his address.
While the US is officially neutral on the sovereignty dispute, Washington supported Britain’s effort to retake the islands after Argentina invaded them in 1982.
Argentina players held up a banner saying ‘The Falklands are Argentine’ at the World Cup
Earlier this year, Argentina’s players held up a banner reading “the Falklands are Argentine” after defeating England 2-1 in the World Cup semi-final.
The Falklands War began in April 1982, when Argentine forces invaded the islands. Then-British prime minister Margaret Thatcher responded by sending a naval task force to reclaim them.
The conflict killed 649 Argentines, 255 Britons and three islanders.
Additional reporting AFP
