The new Argentinian President Javier Milei has told Sky News he has begun discussions with the UK about the Falkland Islands, and that he expects future negotiations over the sovereignty of the British territory.
The comments, made on the fringes of the World Economic Forum meetings in Davos, followed Mr Milei’s first bilateral meeting with the UK – a private session with Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron.
Mr Milei, the radical libertarian who recently won the Argentinian election, pledged during his campaign that he would gain sovereignty over the islands.
David Cameron in Davos
Speaking shortly after his meeting with Lord Cameron, he said: “We talked about the Falklands and it is something for future diplomatic negotiations.”
The comments will spark controversy, as Britain has said in the past that it has no plans for any diplomatic negotiations over the future of the islands.
A UK official said: “On the Falkland Islands, the foreign secretary and president Milei said they would agree to disagree, and do so politely.
“The UK position and ongoing support for the Falkland Islanders’ right to self-determination remains unchanged.”
Mr Milei also gave a speech to the politicians and business people gathered in Davos in which he warned that “the Western world is in danger”.
He said: “Those who are meant to defend the values of the West have been co-opted by a vision of the world that inexorably leads to socialism, and therefore poverty.”
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The World Economic Forum is taking place in Davos, Switzerland
The issue of sovereignty over the Falklands has long been a source of dispute between Britain and Argentina, who fought a brief war over the islands in 1982.
Buenos Aires has repeatedly sought to restore negotiations over the sovereignty of the Falklands, which Argentina calls Las Malvinas, but the UK has maintained talks are not on the table as long as the islands’ inhabitants want to remain British.
In a referendum on the islands’ sovereignty in 2013, 99.8% voted to remain a British territory – with only three voting against.