Argentina plans military base on the Falkland Islands: Milei threatens sanctions

Argentina's President Javier Milei wants to set up a military base in the dispute over the Falkland Islands with Great Britain. He also threatened sanctions against companies that want to commercially exploit the waters around the archipelago without permission from the Argentine government. "We will use all diplomatic, economic and legal means of the state to deter state and non-state actors who violate our sovereignty," said Milei in a TV speech.

British Foreign Secretary Wes Streeting rejected Milei's announcements and described them as domestically motivated. "The Falkland Islands are part of Great Britain because the people of the Falkland Islands chose to be British," he said, referring to a referendum in 2013.

There was a war between Great Britain and Argentina over the Falkland Islands in 1982, in which hundreds of people died. At that time, the USA supported Great Britain, and the Argentine military was driven from the islands by British troops. However, Argentina maintains its claim to the Falkland Islands.

Trump questions position on Falkland Islands

Most recently, US President Donald Trump questioned the United States' previous stance on the decades-old dispute between Argentina and Great Britain over the overseas territory. "I always review every position," Trump told reporters at the White House. Officially, the USA has so far taken a neutral stance, but has de facto recognized the British administration on the Falkland Islands.

Milei took up Trump's statement: "The USA is evaluating a change of course because they know that they have a reliable partner in Argentina." Trump answered evasively when asked whether he would support Great Britain in the event of a renewed conflict and complained that Great Britain had not sufficiently supported the USA in the Iran War.