MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency
Falkland Islands “business as usual” says Chief Executive
Responding yesterday to the announcement by the Argentine Government of the suspension of the British/Argentine Joint Agreement over oil exploration in the Special Area of Cooperation in the South Atlantic, Chief Executive of the Falkland Islands Government, Chris Simpkins, said that while the announcement by Argentine Foreign Minister Jorge Taiana was “unfortunate” it would have no practical effect and there would be “business as usual” in the Falkland Islands
Coming in a sensitive year which marks the twenty-fifth anniversary of the invasion of the Falkand Islands by Argentina and its subsequent liberation by British forces at the cost of many lives, such an announcement, while not "unexpected" was "clearly an irritation" said Mr. Simpkins. However it would have no impact as there had been no exploitation occurring in the zone which was the subject of the agreement and, in fact, there had never been a meeting of the top-level group that governed it. Similar feelings were expressed by Councillor Dr. Andrea Clausen of the Falkland Islands Legislative Council. Speaking on the Falkland Islands Radio Service on Wednesday, Dr. Clausen, who holds the portfolio for hydrocarbons, used the expression "moribund" to describe the agreement, which was signed between the British and Argentine governments on 27th September 1995. On the same programme, Tim Bushell, Chief Executive of Falklands Oil and Gas Ltd., who are exploring for oil under the Atlantic Ocean to the south of the Islands, said of the Argentine announcement that it was "old news" and "political noise", which he did not expect to impact at all on his company's operations. The share price of Desire Petroleum, one of the companies involved in oil exploration to the north of the Falklands, which is quoted on the London Stock Exchange's Alternative Investments Market, (AIM), dipped on March 29th, but only by little over one pence. John Fowler (MercoPress) Stanley
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