Buenos Aires lodges formal protest as tensions with Britain flare following bitter World Cup clash and fresh sovereignty row.
Argentina has accused the Royal Navy of carrying out a “military incursion” into its waters, dramatically escalating tensions with Britain just hours after England’s explosive World Cup semi-final against the South American nation.
In a furious statement, Argentina’s Foreign Ministry said it had lodged a formal diplomatic protest with the British Embassy over the movements of HMS Medway, the Royal Navy patrol ship permanently deployed to protect the Falkland Islands.
Buenos Aires claimed the vessel, which it described as being “illegally stationed in the Malvinas Islands”, entered waters under Argentine jurisdiction without prior notification.
“The Argentine Government firmly rejects this British military incursion into areas under Argentine jurisdiction,” the ministry said.
It went on to accuse Britain of “deepening tensions in the South Atlantic”, claiming the patrol formed part of a long-running pattern of British military activity around the disputed islands.
Argentina also alleged the Royal Navy’s actions were undermining efforts to reach what it described as a peaceful solution to the sovereignty dispute.
The diplomatic clash follows days of increasingly hostile rhetoric from senior Argentine politicians.
Foreign Minister Pablo Quirno recently demanded Britain reopen sovereignty negotiations and controversially described the Falkland Islanders as an “artificially implanted” population.
Following Wednesday night’s World Cup semi-final, Vice President Victoria Villarruel shared footage of Argentine troops landing on the Falkland Islands during the 1982 conflict and repeated Buenos Aires’ long-standing claim that the archipelago belongs to Argentina.
She had earlier branded England “usurping pirates” ahead of the match.
In its latest statement, Argentina declared: “By history, by law, and by conviction, the Falkland Islands are Argentine.”
HMS Medway took over as the Royal Navy’s permanent South Atlantic patrol ship earlier this year, replacing HMS Forth.
Its mission includes protecting the Falkland Islands, supporting the islands’ 3,600 residents, enforcing fisheries regulations and maintaining Britain’s maritime security presence in the region.
Argentine media reported the vessel sailed from the Falklands earlier this month before passing the coasts of Santa Cruz and Tierra del Fuego en route to the Strait of Magellan for resupply.
The ship later visited Punta Arenas in Chile, where Royal Navy personnel met Chilean naval officials and British diplomats.
That visit also drew criticism from Buenos Aires, which has previously accused Chile of weakening Argentina’s claim by cooperating with Britain.
The latest diplomatic row comes despite repeated statements from the UK Government that the status of the Falkland Islands is not up for negotiation.
A Downing Street spokesman recently reiterated: “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.”
The Falkland Islands have been under British administration since 1833, and in a 2013 referendum almost every voter backed remaining a British Overseas Territory.
But with political tensions rising alongside one of football’s fiercest rivalries, the dispute over the South Atlantic islands has once again moved from the history books to the centre of international attention.
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