Argentina will investigate possible links between 45 entities and hydrocarbon exploration projects around the Malvinas (Falkland) Islands, the South Atlantic archipelago whose sovereignty is disputed by London and Buenos Aires, according to a presidential statement.
The announcement comes after President Javier Milei declared in a speech on Thursday that "favourable winds of change" were blowing for Argentina's historic claim over the Malvinas and announced tougher sanctions for any oil project around the archipelago.
The presidential statement, published late Friday, did not identify the entities facing sanctions.
Local media outlets reported that the list includes companies as well as directors, shareholders and executives allegedly linked, directly or indirectly, to hydrocarbon exploration and production projects around the islands.
The measures focus on companies operating, financing or otherwise supporting offshore exploration and production projects in waters north of the archipelago, local media reported.
"Recently, the occupation has significantly intensified its activities, moving forward with the extraction of our natural resources," the presidential statement said, referring to what Buenos Aires considers the unauthorised exploitation of hydrocarbons around the islands.
Argentina considers such activities illegal because they are carried out without authorisation from Buenos Aires, in violation of Law 26.659, in territory and surrounding waters over which it claims sovereignty.
"Sanction proceedings will be initiated not only against companies that are allegedly illegitimately carrying out hydrocarbon activities on our continental shelf, but also against their shareholders and companies that have been providing them with services," the statement said.
"Those who today seek to profit by violating that sovereignty will encounter the full force of Argentine law," it added.
According to a list obtained by the Noticias Argentinas news agency, the 45 targets include British licence holders Navitas Petroleum Development and Production Limited, Rockhopper Exploration and Borders & Southern Falkland Islands Limited, as well as Canadian companies JHI Associates and JHI Falklands.
Most of the entities named are linked to the Sea Lion oil project, located in waters north of the islands, according to the official documentation.
The proceedings also extend to shareholders, investment firms, individuals and service providers linked to the projects, with the entities named spanning Britain, Canada, Israel, Denmark, the United States and the Netherlands.
Located 460 kilometres off Argentina's coast and controlled by the United Kingdom, the Malvinas were the scene of a war in 1982. The conflict ended with the surrender of Argentina's forces after 74 days of fighting, in which 649 Argentines and 255 Britons were killed.
Milei's tougher stance on the Malvinas, an issue central to national identity, came just days after his ally, US President Donald Trump, hinted at a potential shift on the matter.
"I always review all positions. This is one of them," the US president said on Monday, without providing further details, referring to the United States' position of neutrality over the Malvinas, which the British call the Falkland Islands.
"There are winds of change in the world that are favourable to our claim," Milei said in Thursday's speech, alluding to Trump's threat to withdraw support for Britain's sovereignty.
In response to Milei's speech, London reaffirmed on Friday that the islands "are British and will remain so, because that is the overwhelming wish of their inhabitants," adding that its commitment was "unwavering."
British Defence Secretary Wes Streeting responded by asserting Britain's "unshakeable" commitment to the islands.
"The Falklands are British because Falkland Islanders choose to be British," he said in a social media post Friday.
– TIMES/AFP/PERFIL
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