Argentina renews call for Falklands talks amid potential shift in US stance

Argentina has called for talks with the UK over the Falkland Islands after reports the US could review its position on the South Atlantic territory in retaliation for Sir Keir Starmer’s lack of support for the war in Iran.

Downing Street had earlier insisted the sovereignty of the Falklands was “not in question”.

That came after an internal Pentagon email set out options for President Donald Trump’s administration to punish Nato allies for refusing to join the US-Israeli strikes against Iran.

The memo, first reported by Reuters, suggests reassessing US ‌diplomatic support for “imperial possessions” such as the Falklands.

Argentina has long claimed sovereignty over the Falkland Islands and invaded them in 1982 before being defeated in a short but bloody war.

Downing Street said the UK’s stance on the Falklands was not going to change.

“The Falkland Islands have previously voted overwhelmingly in favour of remaining a UK overseas territory, and we’ve always stood behind the islanders’ right to self-determination and the fact that sovereignty rests with the UK,” a No 10 spokesman said.

“The question of the Falkland Islands and the UK’s sovereignty and the islanders’ right to self-determination is not in question, and we’ve expressed that position clearly and consistently.”

Argentina’s foreign minister Pablo Quirno posted on X in response: “The Argentine Republic once again expresses its willingness to resume bilateral negotiations with the United Kingdom that will allow for finding a peaceful and definitive solution to the sovereignty dispute and bring an end to the special and particular colonial situation in which they are immersed.”

The Falkland Islands government said it had “complete confidence in the commitment made by the UK Government to uphold and defend our right of self-determination”.

The row is the latest sign of the strains in the US-UK relationship as the King and Queen prepare for their state visit on Monday.

Downing Street said it was confident the trip would “showcase the very best of the UK-US bilateral relationship”.

Falklands war veteran Simon Weston said he hoped the King would be able to get the US to “calm down”.

Asked what message he hoped Charles would deliver to Mr Trump, he told BBC Newsnight: “I would hope that he would just kind of get him to back down and calm down over the Falklands.

“What we don’t need is Mr Millei to raise his sleeves and believe that aggression may work because that would just cost more lives.”

The US president is an ally of Argentina’s president Javier Milei, while his relationship with Sir Keir has deteriorated dramatically since the start of the Iran crisis.

The Prime Minister has refused to give the US free rein in its use of British military bases to conduct the bombing campaign against Iran.

Limited permission was granted for bases – including RAF Fairford in Gloucestershire and Diego Garcia in the British Indian Ocean Territory – to be used in defensive actions against Iran’s missile sites and installations threatening the Strait of Hormuz, but only after Tehran’s retaliatory actions began.

The US State Department describes the Falklands as “administered by the United Kingdom, claimed by Argentina” and uses the Spanish name Islas Malvinas alongside the English name.

The potential for a shift in the US position has been considered in the Foreign Office although it has been treated as a “hypothetical scenario”.

Ben Judah, who was a special adviser to former foreign secretary David Lammy, said the potential shift had been considered as a hypothetical scenario when he was working in the Foreign Office, and that “the Milei issue is actually a concern”.

He suggested converting the islands from overseas territories to overseas kingdoms, represented by MPs elected to Westminster.

“If this were already the case, His Majesty would be visiting Washington to see Trump this week as King of the Kingdom of the Falklands,” he said.

The Pentagon email expressed frustration at Nato allies’ reluctance to grant access, basing and overflight (ABO) rights for the Iran war.

It suggested Spain could be suspended from the Nato alliance over its refusal to allow bases or airspace to be used to attack Iran.

Downing Street backs Spain’s membership of the “absolutely critical” alliance.

Reform UK’s Nigel Farage said he would raise the issue of the Falklands personally with the Argentinian president when he visits him later this year and tell him their status is “non-negotiable”.

Tory leader Kemi Badenoch said the US stance was “absolute nonsense” and compared it to Mr Trump’s comments on Greenland.

Liberal Democrat leader Sir Ed Davey said the King’s visit to the US should be cancelled, adding: “The state visit should clearly be pulled – this unreliable, damaging president cannot keep insulting our country.”