Argentina welcomes UN decision on Falkland islands
Argentina's government celebrated a decision by a UN commission expanding its maritime territory in the South Atlantic Ocean by 35% to include the disputed Falkland Islands. The UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf ruled that Argentina's maritime territory would extend to 300 milles off its coast. The Argentine foreign ministry said that its waters had increased by 1.7 million square kilometers.
The Falkland Islands War was fought between Argentina and Great Britain in 1982 over control of the Falkland Islands. In a bid to reclaim the territory, Argentina captured the Islands. The UK sent a task force which won back the land it had ruled for 150 years. 655 Argentine and 255 British soldiers lost their lives, as did 3 Falkland Islanders.
The feud between Argentina and Britain got reignited around 2010 when British companies began to drill in waters off the islands, a move Argentina has formally objected to.
US has joined Latin American countries in demanding fresh talks between Britain and Argentina over the sovereignty of the Falkland Islands. Hillary Clinton, the US secretary of state, told the Argentine president that she supported talks over the island's sovereignty. This marks a clear shift from the neutral position adopted by Ronald Reagan's administration on the Falklands sovereignty issue.
On 12 March, 92% of the population had come out in the wind and rain to cast their votes. 1646 (99.8%) votes were cast in favour "of retaining their status as a United Kingdom overseas territory." However, the Argentina government of President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner said that the referendum did not have any legal value.
Argentina's foreign minister on Tuesday called on UN leader Ban Ki-Moon to "wear down" British resistance to talks over the sovereignty of the Falkland Islands. Hector Timerman, the Argentine Foreign Minister said that Britain had rejected as many as 40 resolutions by the UN Decolonisation Committee calling for negotiations between the two countries on sovereignty.
On 26 June 2014, UN's Decolonisation Committee approved a new resolution urging UK and Argentina to negotiate a solution in the "Falklands situation".
UK and Argentina summoned each others' ambassadors for fresh talks. Argentina wanted the explanation from Britain for the increased defense budget and on Edward Snowden's claims that the UK had spied on the Argentine government since 2009. Argentina has also filed criminal charges against 5 British oil companies for carrying out exploration activity in Falklands without the permission of Argentina's Energy Secretariat.
British PM David Cameron defended United Kingdom's claim to the Falkland Islands when confronted by Argentina's foreign minister at the summit in Brussels. Hector Timerman's claims that the islands belonged to Argentina were considered "threatening" by Cameron. This is the first instance where the two have come face to face after Argentina raised concerns over British defense budget expansions in Falklands.
