Argentina has threatened to take international legal action against Britain if London does not stop the Sea Lion oil project near the Falkland Islands. President Javier Milley has given Britain two weeks to stop work on the project, otherwise Buenos Aires will ask the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea in Hamburg to order its temporary suspension, News.bg reports.
The Sea Lion project is being developed by the British Rockhopper Exploration and the Israeli Navitas Petroleum. It is located about 220 kilometers north of the Falkland Islands, which are under British control but are the subject of a long-standing territorial dispute with Argentina. Oil production is expected to begin in 2028.
Buenos Aires considers the British mining licenses illegal and claims that the project constitutes exploitation of natural resources that Argentina considers its own. At the same time, Britain defends its control over the archipelago and the right of its inhabitants to determine its future status.
Tensions have increased in recent weeks. Earlier this month, an Argentine court ordered a temporary halt to work on Sea Lion until an environmental assessment is carried out. However, the practical implementation of the decision depends on international cooperation, and the companies behind the project have said they intend to continue its development.
Milley has already taken other measures against companies involved in oil activities around the islands. His government is also preparing legislation that would impose tougher penalties for extracting natural resources in the area without Argentine permission.
The dispute over the Falkland Islands, known in Argentina as the Malvinas, dates back to the 19th century. Britain established control over the archipelago in 1833, while Argentina continues to claim sovereignty over it.
In 1982, the dispute escalated into war after the Argentine military junta occupied the islands. Britain sent in troops and, after about 10 weeks of fighting, retook control. The conflict killed 649 Argentine soldiers, 255 British soldiers and three islanders.
The new tensions over oil production have put economic interests in the islands at the center of one of the longest-running territorial disputes between Argentina and Britain.