Argentina lodges legal claim against UK's Falklands oil exploration

Argentina files legal challenge over UK Falklands oil exploration

The Argentinian government has launched legal proceedings aimed at halting oil and gas exploration north of the Falkland Islands, intensifying its dispute with the UK.

In a statement, Buenos Aires said the application submitted to the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea was intended to stop activity that it says was authorised “illegally” by the UK.

The move comes two weeks after Argentinian President Javier Milei called for the Sea Lion oilfield project to be scrapped. The project is a joint venture between Israeli and British companies.

UK Foreign Office minister Uma Kumaran condemned what she called Argentina’s “escalating campaign” against companies working in the Falklands, while announcing fresh protections for them.

The latest developments deepen tensions between the UK and Argentina over sovereignty of the self-governing British territory, known in Argentina as Las Malvinas, more than 40 years after a British military task force drove out Argentinian forces that had invaded the islands.

Earlier last month, Milei also threatened economic sanctions against firms extracting oil near the Falkland Islands.

Uma Kumaran accused the Argentinian government of “economic coercion” against the people of the Falkland Islands.

“We will do whatever it takes to support them,” she told the House of Commons on Tuesday.

The Sea Lion oilfield, about 130 miles (209 km) from the Falkland Islands, is estimated to hold 1.7 billion barrels of oil.

The Falkland Islands government renewed exploration licences last month, and the field is expected to begin production in 2028, potentially bringing in huge revenues for the islands’ roughly 3,500 residents.

Two oil companies – Britain’s Rockhopper Exploration and Israel’s Navitas Petroleum – say they hold valid licences issued by Britain.

The Argentinian government says the marine environment in disputed maritime areas is protected under international law.

Its filing “seeks to preserve Argentina’s sovereign rights over its continental shelf and prevent activities authorised unilaterally and illegally by the United Kingdom”.

In a post on X, Argentinian Foreign Affairs Minister Pablo Quirno said the government was asking the tribunal to issue a series of orders against the UK, including a halt to new exploration permits.

The UK government, however, says Sea Lion is lawful, lies on the Falkland Islands shelf and is regulated by the islands’ government.

Although the Falkland Islands government issues exploration licences, they must be approved by the UK Foreign Secretary.

Kumaran said the tribunal application “does not invalidate licenses issued by the Falkland Islands government, alter the islands’ regulatory authority, or require lawful hydrocarbon development activities to cease”.

The tribunal that will hear the case is an independent judicial body in Hamburg responsible for the fair application of the United Nations’ Convention on the Law of the Sea.

FCDO officials have said the UK will engage with the tribunal but will firmly contest Argentina’s claim.

They said the intention was not to escalate the dispute, but to respond firmly to Argentina’s latest step and defend what the UK considers legitimate economic activity.

They also want to reassure businesses worried about Argentine retaliation. For that reason, they are introducing measures under the Protection of Trading Interests Act to shield firms from any extra-territorial effect of Argentine laws following Milei’s sanctions threats.

Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband said: “Argentina's attempts to intimidate businesses and individuals engaged in legitimate commercial activity are unacceptable. Companies should be free to make lawful commercial decisions without the threat of political coercion.”

The latest action follows Milei’s sharp criticism of the UN in his speech to the General Assembly late last month, when he said it had failed to act over the sovereignty of the Falkland Islands.

He described the UN as “a useless organisation” that serves only “arrogant parasites dressed up as well-intentioned bureaucrats”.

On Tuesday, Kumaran called Milei’s remarks in New York “inflammatory”.

Despite its defeat in 1982, Argentina has always maintained its claim to the Falkland Islands. Over the years, successive governments have pursued that claim with varying levels of aggression and diplomacy.

UK officials believe the current Argentine leadership is deliberately seeking confrontation ahead of next year’s elections.