Argentina’s president presses British premier on Falklands issue at G7

By Bala Chambers

LONDON (AA) - Argentina’s President Alberto Fernández told British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday that there cannot be any advancement in the two countries’ bilateral relations without dialogue on the Falklands Islands.

The two leaders met at the G7 summit in Germany shortly after the 40th anniversary of the war, which took place in the South Atlantic.

"We have a problem that until we solve it, we will not be able to move forward at all, and it is the Malvinas issue and we need Great Britain to sit down to negotiate," Fernández said to Johnson, referring to the Spanish name for the islands.

But Johnson told Fernández that the sovereignty of the islands was “not in question,” insisting that the matter was resolved 40 years ago, and defended Falkland Islanders’ right to self-determination.

Fernández responded by saying: "No, 40 years ago what happened was a war. Now every year, the United Nations says that we have to sit down to negotiate."

The Argentine leader underscored the importance of the issue of sovereignty for many Argentines, insisting that "Argentina is ready to resume dialogue" in accordance with the relevant United Nations resolutions.

Fernández later told the local daily Perfil that he hoped the UK "would reflect and change and we would sit down to talk.”

On Monday, a Downing Street spokesperson confirmed that Fernández raised the issue of the Falkland Islands, describing Johnson's position regarding sovereignty as “firm,” adding "the Prime Minister stressed that Falkland Islanders, like all people, have a right to self-determination."

Fernández also said that Johnson thanked Argentina for attending the G7 summit and valued Argentina's position on the Russia-Ukraine war, with Johnson keen on military support for Ukraine while Fernández pushed for dialogue with Moscow.

The two leaders met for 30 minutes at the Bavarian castle of Elmau, discussing a range of areas of mutual interest including agriculture, gas and minerals, although Fernández stressed that there is no room to advance in potential bilateral deals without dialogue concerning the Falklands.

The last time a British and Argentine leader met was back in 2018, while President Mauricio Macri was in office in the South American country.

On Monday, Fernández also met with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, discussing multilateral and regional issues including climate change and seeking to strengthen dialogue, as well as German Chancellor and G7 host Olaf Scholz, touching on energy supplies.

At last Thursday's special session of the United Nations Decolonization Committee (C-24), Argentine Foreign Minister Santiago Cafiero called on the UK to "leave its exercise in colonial power to the pages of history.”

Argentina and the UK have endured a protracted disagreement over ownership of the Falklands, with Argentina claiming sovereignty over the British-administered islands. The two nations entered into a brief war over the Falklands in 1982.