Argentina to take legal action if Falkland Islands project continues

Argentina has issued a stern warning to the United Kingdom, threatening legal action if the UK proceeds with an oil project off the Falkland Islands. President Javier Milei gave the UK a two-week deadline to cease work on the Sea Lion project, otherwise Argentina plans to seek a temporary halt from the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, according to a statement published on X. The Sea Lion project, situated in the North Falkland Basin, is operating under British licenses, which Argentina considers illegitimate.

The Falkland Islands, referred to as the Islas Malvinas in Argentina, have been a British Overseas Territory since 1833. However, Buenos Aires asserts its claim based on the legal succession of the former Spanish colonial empire. In 1982, a military conflict erupted over the small archipelago in the South Atlantic following the Argentine military junta's decision to occupy the islands.