“The Falklands are our future – we need to recover these islands which are nationally relevant,” Argentina’s president said.
Argentina’s President Javier Milei (Image: Getty)
Argentina’s president Javier Milei has said that the country has an ‘obligation’ to recover the Falkland Islands, telling the Argentinian people ‘there is no other path forward’.
Speaking in Spanish during an address on Thursday, September 3, Milei said: “The Falklands are Argentinean. Historically and legally. There can be no argument. They are part of the Argentine territory.”
Argentina has long claimed it inherited the islands, which it calls Las Malvinas, from Spain after its independence in 1816 and has claimed that Britain took control in 1833 through an illegal colonial act.
He later said: “The Falklands are our future – we need to recover these islands which are nationally relevant.
“There is no other path forward.
“It is the best way of paying tribute to those who sacrificed their lives for this cause. It is our obligation as a nation to honour their memory.”
Britain and Argentina fought a brief war over the islands in 1982.
The war over the disputed territory in the South Atlantic Ocean fundamentally changed the diplomatic relationship between the two nations.
Now, the prospect of an oil boom around the Falklands and the riches associated with it has angered Argentina.
Milei said during the address that he will impose sanctions on any oil companies working in the area “under the British occupation”.
Sea Lion oilfield, owned by an Israeli and a British firm, is located approximately 220km (136 miles) north of the Falklands.
Production at the oilfield is expected to begin in 2028.
Milei has said that this was a “clear and present danger”.
“If we do not act swiftly in a few months, they will have the material capacity to access the oil that lies underneath our sea. Something that has never happened before,” he said.
There is also speculation that Washington could be seeking access to the oil produced there.
Milei’s address comes amid renewed tensions over the territory after US President Donald Trump hinted his country would not help the UK in a future conflict over the islands.
Announcing plans for a naval base in Tierre del Fuego in the south of Argentina, Milei said Trump and the US were “assessing their historical position in regard to the Falklands”.
“That is not empty words as they understand that Argentina is a reliable partner and a valuable ally for decades to come,” he said.
Although the US is formally neutral, Washington provided support for Britain’s campaign to retake the islands after the Argentinian invasion in 1982.
A World War II gun at Gypsy Cove near Port Stanley, Falkland Islands (Image: Getty)
On April 2, 1982, Argentine military forces launched an invasion of the Falkland Islands.
In response, British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher dispatched a naval task force to the South Atlantic to recapture the land by force.
Over 74 days, the military forces of both nations engaged in intense, close-quarters land, air and sea battles in unforgiving weather conditions.
The fighting finally ended on June 14, 1982 when the remaining Argentine forces officially surrendered at Port Stanley.
Complete control of the territory was returned to the UK. Although relatively short, the fierce military conflict resulted in a devastating loss of life on both sides.
A total of 649 Argentine military personnel, 255 British Armed Forces personnel and three civilian Falkland Islanders died in the hostilities.
In a 2013 referendum, the Falkland Islanders voted overwhelmingly to remain a British overseas territory, with 99.8% voting in favour and just three votes against.
Milei also said on Thursday that the islanders “do not have a legitimate right to self-determination and any argument on any such self-determination is invalid”.