UK hits back at Argentinian Falklands claim and insists islands remain British

Javier Milei making a television address on Thursday in which he said the ‘winds of change’ favoured his country’s claim to the Falklands. Photograph: Argentina's presidency press office/AFP/Getty ImagesView image in fullscreenJavier Milei making a television address on Thursday in which he said the ‘winds of change’ favoured his country’s claim to the Falklands.

Preferir o Guardian no Google. Ministros britânicos reagiram depois que o presidente argentino disse que os “ventos da mudança” favoráveis à reivindicação do seu país sobre as Ilhas Falkland estavam “soprando ao redor do mundo”.

The foreign secretary, Ed Miliband, said the UK would “resolutely uphold” the self-determination of the islands after the Argentinian president, Javier Milei, said his country needed to take them back.

Miliband said in a post on X: “The UK’s position on the Falkland Islands is unwavering. The islands are British and will remain so because that is the overwhelming position of the Islanders.

Wes Streeting, the defence secretary, said Milei’s statement “tells us more about domestic politics in Argentina than it does about the Falkland Islands”.

He added on X: “The Falklands are British because Falkland Islanders choose to be British. Our commitment to the Falklands is absolute and unshakeable.”.

Lucy Powell, a secretária de Educação, também insistiu que as ilhas eram britânicas, acrescentando: “Defenderemos o direito daqueles que vivem nas Ilhas Falkland de determinar seu próprio futuro.”.

The latest diplomatic spat over the south Atlantic archipelago came after comments by the US president, Donald Trump, who has cast doubt on American support for British control of the islands.

Ver imagem em tela cheia. Mount Tumbledown atrás de Stanley nas Ilhas Falkland, que a Argentina chama de Malvinas. Fotografia: Ricardo Mazalán/AP. Os EUA têm tradicionalmente permanecido neutros quanto à soberania das Ilhas Falkland, enquanto reconhecem o controle de fato da Grã-Bretanha sobre elas.

Britain and Argentina fought a war over the islands in 1982, when British forces defeated Argentinian troops, who had landed there to stake a territorial claim.

In more recent years, the British oil company Rockhopper and the Israeli company Navitas have been developing the Sea Lion oilfield, 140 miles to the north of the islands.

Asked on Monday whether he could review British sovereignty over the islands as a way to push the UK to spend more on defence, Trump said: “I always review every position.

Na quinta-feira, quando questionado sobre se os EUA apoiariam o Reino Unido em caso de invasão argentina, ele se referiu à recusa do governo em permitir que ele utilizasse bases britânicas em seu ataque inicial ao Irã no início deste ano.

He added: “The Falklands is very interesting because your country is not the same country it was 20 years ago, 25 years ago. That was a long time [ago], you went there and you just took it back very quickly.

There was no games, so I don’t know if you’re prepared to do that.”.

On Thursday night, Milei highlighted Trump’s comments, saying: “President Trump declared that the US is re-evaluating its historic position in relation to the Malvinas [the Argentinian name for the Falklands].”.

Ele acrescentou: “Os EUA estão considerando essa mudança de posição porque sabem que a Argentina tem um parceiro confiável, alinhado com valores ocidentais, em uma posição estrategicamente importante que pode ser um aliado valioso nas décadas que virão.”.

He also said companies developing oil “behind the back of the Argentine government” would be barred from doing business in Argentina.

Rockhopper’s shares dropped 7% in early trading on Friday.