Argentina rejects British sovereignty over South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – On Tuesday, July 5, the Argentine government reiterated its rejection of the intended designation of the entire territory of South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands as “specially protected areas” by the government of the United Kingdom.

“On this occasion, the Argentine government categorically rejected every one of the terms of the announcement mentioned above, as well as any pretension of the United Kingdom to adopt or apply norms concerning Argentine territories and maritime spaces, which includes the Malvinas (Falkland Islands), South Georgias, the South Sandwich Islands, and the surrounding maritime spaces,” the Argentine Executive detailed in a statement.

Argentina also reminded Great Britain that its extension of the Convention – announced by an official UK communiqué on June 24, 2021 – on the Biological Diversity of the islands “has been duly protested” by Argentine citizens since these territories are “an integral part of the national territory of the Argentine Republic”.

In this sense, the government of Alberto Fernandez has maintained that such a British claim “constitutes a unilateral action (…) with the provisions of Resolution 31/49 of the United Nations General Assembly” and urged the United Kingdom to refrain from making decisions while the islands are subject to the process recommended by the UN.

“The Argentine government has once again reaffirmed its sovereignty over the Malvinas (Falklands), South Georgia, and South Sandwich Islands (…) being illegitimately occupied by the United Kingdom,” Buenos Aires added.

Argentina claims its sovereignty over the Malvinas – Falklands in the British nomenclature -so it is usually wary of any gesture by the UK, even if it derives from the royal family. In 2016, Argentina criticized Prince William for spending six weeks receiving military training in the archipelago.

Last June 28, during the G7 Summit in Germany, the British Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, insisted before Fernandez that the sovereignty of the Falklands was not in question.

In response, the Argentine president replied that it would be difficult for both countries to sit down to discuss other issues without dealing with the Malvinas.

With information from La Tercera