Argentina’s government has launched legal action against companies linked to an Israeli-British oil project near the Malvinas Islands, escalating its sovereignty claim over the disputed South Atlantic territory.
Britain and Argentina fought a 74-day war over the islands in 1982. The archipelago is a British overseas territory known in Britain and internationally as the Falkland Islands.
President Javier Milei announced last Friday that his government would investigate and seek sanctions against 45 companies and individuals operating in the area. On Tuesday, the government expanded that figure to 60.
On Monday night, Milei’s administration announced a criminal complaint against Navitas Petroleum Development & Production Ltd, Navitas Petroleum Atlantic United, Navitas Petroleum LP, IHI Associates Inc and Eco Atlantic Oil & Gas Ltd.
The companies "allegedly hold licences granted by the illegitimate government of the United Kingdom [in the Malvinas] for the exploration and/or exploitation of hydrocarbons in the North Malvinas Basin", the Presidency said in a statement.
"The criminal complaint was filed yesterday [Monday] against the companies involved in the illegal exploration and exploitation of the northern Malvinas Basin," Milei's press spokesperson Adrián Ravier told reporters on Tuesday.
The complaint targets shareholders as well as "all directors, managers, trustees, members of the supervisory board, administrators, agents and representatives" and anyone else who "may have been involved in the punishable act," said a government statement.
Argentina argues that the companies' activities breach Law No. 26,659, which prohibits hydrocarbon exploration and exploitation in the disputed area without Argentine authorisation. The legislation allows for penalties of up to 20 years' disqualification from operating in Argentina and up to 15 years in prison.
The expanded proceedings also target shareholders, executives and strategic suppliers linked to companies involved in the projects.
Ravier said the sanctions would apply not only to oil operators but also to their shareholders, directors and suppliers. Those targeted would be barred from entering agreements with the Argentine government and from accessing tax benefits or joining RIGI, the administration's investment incentive regime for large-scale projects, or energy developments such as those relating to the Vaca Muerta shale formation.
Sea Lion project
The Sea Lion oil project is being developed by Britain's Rockhopper Exploration and Israel's Navitas Petroleum about 220 kilometres (137 miles) north of the islands. The companies say oil extraction is due to begin in March 2028.
Canadian company Eco Atlantic, which holds a licence to explore an area adjacent to Sea Lion, is also facing legal action.
Milei is also pushing legislation to toughen existing sanctions against companies involved in unauthorised hydrocarbon activity around the islands.
The government said the complaint "constitutes a concrete step to protect natural resources and safeguard sovereignty" over the archipelago.
It also announced budgetary measures to advance construction of a naval base in Tierra del Fuego, a project first announced in 2022. Ravier said the facility would be "not of a military nature, but a logistics hub."
Argentina previously sanctioned Rockhopper in 2013, imposing a 20-year ban on operating in the country over what it described as "illegal and clandestine" activities. Navitas received the same sanction in April 2022.
The Malvinas lie about 600 kilometres (370 miles) east of Argentina's southernmost tip and are administered by Britain. The 1982 conflict ended with the surrender of Argentina's military government after 74 days of fighting that killed 649 Argentines and 255 British troops.
The dispute returned to the headlines in recent days after US President Donald Trump threatened to review Washington's long-standing neutrality over the islands, a warning welcomed by Milei.
Emboldened by Trump's comments, the Argentine president has stepped up efforts to block the British-Israeli oil project, arguing that it violates a UN resolution calling on both countries to refrain from unilateral actions in the islands while the sovereignty dispute remains unresolved.
In a speech last Thursday, Milei renewed Argentina's claim to the islands after Trump said Washington was reviewing its position.
"There are winds of change in the world that are favourable to our claim," Milei said.
The La Libertad Avanza leader's address prompted London to assert its "unshakeable" claim over the islands.
Speaking in the Houses of Parliament on Wednesday, British Prime Minister Andy Burnham said his government would "always respect" the Falkland Islanders' right to "choose to be British."
"That will never change under this government, and we will be relentless in defending that," Burnham said.
"The Falklands are British because Falkland Islanders choose to be British," UK Defence Secretary Wes Streeting wrote on social media on Friday.
The islanders voted overwhelmingly in a 2013 referendum to remain British.
– TIMES/AFP/NA
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