“The Falkland Islands are Argentine by history and law”: Javier Milei hardens Buenos Aires’ claim

Javier Milei is using what he called “favorable winds” to intensify Argentina’s historic claim to the Falkland Islands, announcing tougher penalties for unauthorized oil activity around the disputed South Atlantic archipelago.

In a televised address, the Argentine president said he would submit a bill to “toughen sanctions and penalties against companies linked to unauthorized operations” around the islands. Buenos Aires and London dispute sovereignty over the territory, which Britain administers in practice.

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The Falkland Islands are Argentine by history and law.

The move came four days after Donald Trump, Milei’s ideological ally, said he could not rule out reviewing the U.S. position of neutrality on the islands. Asked about the issue, Trump had said, “I always review all positions. It is one among many,” without elaborating. Milei immediately welcomed the remark as “something very strong concerning the most important and sacred cause for us Argentines.”

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Toughen sanctions and penalties against companies linked to unauthorized operations.

The United States and most Western countries recognize that the United Kingdom administers the islands de facto, while not taking a position on sovereignty itself. A 1965 United Nations resolution recognizes the existence of a dispute and calls on both sides to seek a peaceful solution.

Argentina also recently condemned an oil project by a British company, and on Tuesday Falklands veterans and environmental groups filed a legal action seeking to block a project led by Britain’s Rockhopper and Israel’s Navitas north of the islands. The archipelago lies 600 kilometers from Argentina’s Patagonian coast and was the site of a 74-day war in 1982 that killed 649 Argentines and 255 Britons.

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Something very strong concerning the most important and sacred cause for us Argentines.

Known in Argentina as the Malvinas, the islands occupy a central place in national identity. The slogan “Malvinas Argentinas” appears in the Constitution, municipal names, schoolbooks, murals, bus stickers and tattoos.

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I always review all positions. It is one among many.