It is not yet clear how or to what extent sanctions will be imposed or toughened. In Argentina, a current law already allows restricting the activities of oil companies that participate in projects considered unauthorized on the islands.
Two oil companies, Britain’s Rockhopper Exploration and Israel’s Navitas Petroleum, will begin drilling for oil in the Sea Lion oil field off the coast of the Falklands within two years, something Milei said Argentina could not allow.
A joint statement from the two companies on Friday said they had valid licenses granted by the Falkland Islands government, “and with the full support of the UK government.”
The project is due to deliver its first oil in 2028, Rockhopper and Navitas said the partnerships’ schedule would not be affected.
The Sea Lion oil field, about 210 kilometers from the islands, contains approximately 1.7 billion barrels of oil, described by Rockhopper as a field containing “highly marketable crude oil.”
Milei also announced plans for a naval base in Tierra del Fuego, southern Argentina, and said Trump and the United States were “evaluating their historical position with respect to the Malvinas,” which Argentina refers to as Las Malvinas.
“These are not empty words, as they understand that Argentina is a reliable partner and a valuable ally for decades to come,” he said, describing the United Kingdom as a nation “in decline.”
On Thursday, President Trump suggested that the United States would not help the United Kingdom in any future conflict in the Falklands because Britain had “not been there to help me” during its war with Iran.
Trump’s latest statements on the islands come after he previously stated the US position on the Falklands. It is one of many that are being reviewed.
On Friday, Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband said the UK would “resolutely defend” self-determination for the islands.
Writing in X on Friday, Miliband said the islands would remain British as that is the “overwhelming position of islanders”.
Defense Secretary Wes Streeting also said Britain’s commitment to the Falkland Islands was “absolute and unwavering”.
“Milei’s statement overnight tells us more about domestic politics in Argentina than it does about the Falkland Islands,” he wrote in his own post on X.
In an earlier statement, Downing Street said it was “not the first time” the Argentine government had made economic threats against the Falkland Islands.
“We are clear that the right of the inhabitants of the Malvinas Islands to self-determination extends to the right to exploit their own natural resources,” he said.
Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch said: “Britain is not giving in to bullies.”
“If (Milei) wants a stronger Argentina, he should build his economy, not threaten others.”
Although the United States is formally neutral, Washington provided support to the British campaign to recover the islands after the Argentine invasion in 1982.
Argentine forces landed in the Falklands to claim territory in 1982, sparking a 74-day war over the territory when a British military task force expelled them.
The conflict caused the death of 255 British soldiers, three islanders and 649 Argentine soldiers.
In a sign of the current tensions between the two countries over the issue, Argentine players celebrated their victory over England in the World Cup by waving a banner. in support of his country’s territorial claim.
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