MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency
UK, US support for British Falklands sovereignty but Spaniards, Germans and Italians favor Argentina
In Britain, the majority of people (57%) think the Falklands should belong to the UK. One in six (16%) say the Islands should belong to Argentina, and 27% unsure How do Europeans, Americans, and even the UK feel about the sovereignty dispute over the Falkland Islands between Argentina and the UK? A new YouGov EuroTrack survey asked several Western European EU nations (as well as the UK and USA): Should the Falkland Islands belong to the United Kingdom or Argentina?
In Britain, the majority of people (57%) think the Falklands should belong to the UK. One in six (16%) say the Islands should belong to Argentina, and 27% are unsure.
A separate YouGov survey recently found that the British public’s emotional connection to the Falkland Islands is not especially strong. Only 35% say they would be upset if the Falklands went to Argentina, with 46% saying they wouldn’t be bothered and 9% saying they’d be actively pleased.
By contrast, in Spain, 52% of people say the Falklands/Malvinas should be Argentine, with only 14% saying they should be British. This may well reflect Spanish frustration with their own similar dispute with Britain over sovereignty of Gibraltar, as well potentially as solidarity with a country more Spaniards consider similar to their own than the UK, .
Opinion in the rest of Western Europe is less certain. In France – reportedly the only nation to propose caution on the use of Malvinas to call the Falklands, 27% support the Argentine claim to the Islands, compared to 23% for the UK’s.
Italians and Germans also tend to favor Argentine sovereignty of the Islands, at 30-32% compared to 21-24% who back the British status quo.
The two Nordic nations surveyed – Denmark and Sweden – tend to come down on the UK’s side, with the former backing British rule by 31% to 23%, and the latter by 28% to 23%.
Americans too weigh in on Britain’s side, saying the Falkland Islands should fall under British sovereignty by 35% to 24% for Argentina.
The YouGov sample size included 2066 adults in GB; 1000 adults in France; 2387 adults in Germany; 1001 adults in Denmark; 1011 adults in Sweden; 1063 adults in Spain; 1011 adults in Italy and 998 adult citizens in the USA The Fieldwork extended from 8th August to 6th September 2023.
Top Comments
Disclaimer & comment rules-
-
-
Read all commentsAs the poll just asked people from other countries what they thought and made no mention of- should the Islands people have the right to decide their future- the poll results not surprising. and pretty well meaningless.
Sep 27th, 2023 - 12:08 pm +13Then Falklands War Near 42 years ago so naturally a large chunk of countries populations forgotten about it or it was before they were born
Must be a boring time of year for UK pollsters I guess.
It is not a popularity contest. No matter how much support Argentina has, only the Islanders can decide their future. And as for this supposed support, there has been no UN resolution since 1988. The matter was settled.
Sep 27th, 2023 - 11:37 am +12https://falklandstimeline.files.wordpress.com/2022/08/1982-to-1999.pdf
I wonder if the same people asked how important Antarctica was to Britain . I bet you would get a huge majority say very important. Yet those same people dont realise how important the Falklands are to accesding this frozen continent.
Sep 27th, 2023 - 10:27 am +11People now have more pressing things to worry about in the northern hemisphere. There is a real possibility of all out war with Russia and could lead to a nuclear action which could destroy most of that hemisphere.
Just as happened before the 82 war, most people do not know where the islands actually are. Ignorance to done is a bliss.
The Americans know how stragitacly important these islands are to counter the growing concerns of China getting established in Argentina.
The world is in turmoil as they battle to keep the food chain going while Russia is controlling huge important exporting of grain from an important growing country that Ukraine is to the world.
Conducting these polls is just a way for those trying to spark further unrest.
Commenting for this story is now closed.
If you have a Facebook account, become a fan and comment on our Facebook Page!