South America
Argentina’s foreign minister expresses commitment to “full sovereignty” of Las Malvinas after UK returns Chagos to Mauritius
Following the UK government’s decision to return ownership of the Chagos Islands to Mauritius, the Argentine government has emphasized its commitment to regaining sovereignty of the Falkland Islands (known as the Islas Malvinas in Spanish).
A statement published by the Argentine Foreign Ministry in response to the UK’s announcement celebrated the “historic event in the decolonization process, which confirms the importance of dialogue, diplomatic negotiations and peaceful means of resolving disputes between countries.”
The statement continued: “Argentina sees in this agreement an encouraging example to continue working towards a serious and constructive dialogue with the UK, with the goal of generating the necessary trust to restart negotiations about the sovereignty of the Islas Malvinas, Georgias del Sur, Sandwich del Sur, and the surrounding maritime spaces, in line with Resolution 2065 (XX) of the United Nations General Assembly.”
The news was also welcomed by Argentina’s foreign minister, Diana Mondino, who described the UK’s decision to cede the Chagos Islands to Mauritius as a “step in the right direction” towards “ending obsolete practices.” She added, “Carrying on in the direction we started, with concrete actions and not empty rhetoric, we are going to recover full sovereignty of our Islas Malvinas. The Malvinas were, are, and will always be Argentine.”
Alison Blake, the governor of the Falkland Islands, posted a statement on X in which she recognized, “I am aware that there may be concerns, either amongst the Falkland Islands community or others, of potential read across to the Falkland Islands.”
She emphasized that the “legal and historical contexts” of the Chagos Islands and Falkland Islands are “very different,” and concluded, “The UK Government remains committed to defending the Falkland Islanders’ right of self-determination, and the UK’s unwavering commitment to defend UK sovereignty remains undiminished.”
At the end of September, the UK and Argentina reached a new agreement about the Falkland Islands. The pact includes the resumption of weekly flights between Brazilian city São Paulo and the islands. Once a month, a flight between the two destinations will also stop in the Argentine city of Córdoba.
The two governments also agreed to recommence negotiations on a humanitarian project plan and arrange a visit for relatives of soldiers killed in the Falklands conflict to visit their graves.
However, Argentina’s Vice President Victoria Villarruel heavily criticized the pact, describing it as “contrary to the interests of our Nation.” She added, “Do they take us for fools? They obtain material, concrete, and immediate advantages, while they offer us crumbs as emotional consolation and weaken our possibility of negotiation.”
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