Britain’s ambassador to Israel has urged Jerusalem to stay out of the row with Argentina over the Falklands Islands, saying Israelis will “understand the pain and loss” suffered by islanders and British military families during the war.
Simon Walters declared that the UK’s position was clear and that “the Falkland Islands are British, and self-determination lies with the islanders”.
His comments were in direct response to an opinion piece by Argentina’s foreign minister Pablo Quirno in the Jerusalem Post, in which he insisted the islands belong to his country “by history, by right, by conviction”.
Quirno’s article was a fresh attempt to persuade Israel to lobby the Trump administration on Argentina’s behalf.
The long-running dispute was revived during the recent Fifa World Cup in the US, with Argentina’s victory over England proving a focal point for debate. Fifa is currently investigating members of the Argentine squad after they held a banner declaring their nation’s sovereignty over the Falklands following the match.
And, prior to the game, several Israeli ministers publicly supported Argentina, whose president, Javier Milei, is an outspoken Zionist, suggesting that they would back the South American nation amid strained UK-Israeli relations over the Gaza War.
Likewise, Marc Zell, the chairman of the US-based organisation Republicans Overseas Israel called on the Trump administration to “reconsider its support for the British claim and switch support to Argentina” in light of the UK’s “dastardly betrayal” of America by not getting involved in the Iran war.
He said doing so would punish “Britain’s treachery” while rewarding Milei’s “staunch support for the US in its conflict with Iran”.
However, in a similar op-ed for the same paper, Walters hit back by invoking memories of the Falklands conflict.
He wrote: “Despite the clarity of Britain’s sovereignty and the right of self-determination of the islanders, in 1982, in flagrant violation of the UN Charter, Argentina launched an illegal and unprovoked military invasion in an attempt to seize the Falkland Islands by force.
“The UN Security Council demanded the immediate withdrawal of all Argentinian forces from the Falkland Islands, and it was Argentina’s refusal to comply that forced Britain to retake the islands militarily. During this operation, 255 British soldiers were killed, as were three Falkland Islanders.
“I know Israelis will understand the pain of this loss all too well, given the Israeli lives that have also been lost in defending Israel from military invasions.”
Walters noted he had read Quirno’s article “with interest” but accused him of spreading “historical falsehood”.
“At the heart of Argentina’s illegitimate claim over the Falkland Islands is a historical falsehood. British sovereignty over the islands dates back to 1765, some years before the Argentinian Republic even existed,” he went on.
“On January 3, 1833, an Argentinian military garrison that had been sent to the Falkland Islands three months earlier to impose Argentinian sovereignty was expelled by British forces. No civilian Argentinian population was expelled.
“The land that now forms the Argentinian province of Tierra del Fuego, which the Argentinian Republic purportedly claims the Falkland Islands as part of, did not itself form part of the Argentinian Republic until approximately half a century after 1833. In this context, any claim that Argentina’s sovereignty preceded British sovereignty is patently false.
“Secondly, the principle of self-determination is fundamental when discussing the Falkland Islands. The right of self-determination is universal as enshrined in the UN Charter and in Article 1 of the two UN Covenants on Human Rights. No amount of intellectual gymnastics can alter this fundamental fact.”
Walters also stressed the UK’s “desire to maintain a respectful and fruitful bilateral relationship with Argentina”.
He signed off: “The Falkland Islands are British, and will remain so.”
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