President Javier Milei has dialed up Argentina’s claim over the British territory, while President Trump has raised questions about longstanding U.S. neutrality on the dispute.
President Javier Milei of Argentina has been ramping up his country’s claim over the long-disputed Falkland Islands, a British territory for almost two centuries.
Mr. Milei, a right-wing populist and staunch ally of President Trump, said on Thursday that his government would take stronger steps against an offshore oil project near the Falklands. In a nationally televised address, he described the project by Israeli and British firms as a threat to Argentina’s sovereignty and an attempt to steal natural resources from its people.
Argentina, which calls the islands the Malvinas, has never accepted British sovereignty over them. An Argentine invasion of the islands in 1982 set off a brief and bloody war that Britain won.
Mr. Milei’s speech followed recent comments from Mr. Trump that raised questions about U.S. neutrality on the dispute.
Here’s what to know about the Falklands and why they are so contentious.
The archipelago, with two main islands and hundreds of smaller ones, is about 300 miles east of the South American mainland. About 3,600 people live there, according to the 2021 census.
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