The Argentine Foreign Ministry denied in a statement released on Thursday that Buenos Aires sea port authorities threatened Bermuda registered 'Queen Victoria' Cunard cruise ship with hefty fines if it did not lower its “red duster” flag, the ensign for the United Kingdom merchant vessels.
The cross-party delegation of Uruguayan parliamentarians currently visiting the Falkland Islands appear quite unmoved by what their leader Jaime Trobo described as the “dust storm” that their visit had created both at home in Uruguay and in neighbouring Argentina.
According to reports in the British media, Cunard's 'Queen Victoria' was warned it faced hefty fines if the cruise continued to fly the red ensign while in the port of Buenos Aires. This has led to a strong reaction from the Foreign Office which described the incident as an 'unacceptable example of harassment and intimidation” and anticipated it will be raising the incident with the Argentine authorities.
Minister of State for the British Foreign and Commonwealth Office, the Rt. Honourable Hugo Swire currently making his first visit to the Falklands reiterated on Wednesday his previously expressed opinion that the attitude of the present Argentine government towards the Islands denies to the people of Argentina an opportunity for economic growth as well as denying the fundamental right of self-determination to the population of the Islands.
The visit of four Uruguayan lawmakers to the Falkland Islands is receiving ample coverage from the Argentine media particularly the intention of closer links between Montevideo and the Islands including the possibility of sending Uruguayan manpower as well as promoting trade, tourism, culture and social relations
Foreign and Commonwealth Office Minister Hugo Swire arrived on Monday afternoon to the Falkland Islands for a visit that will extend from 10-14 February.
Fortuna Ltd, one of the Falkland Islands leading fishing companies announced the incorporation to their Falklands registered fleet of the 55-meter ice class longliner 'Tronio', specifically designed for ice fishing in Antarctica.
I am honoured to hold Ministerial responsibility for the Falkland Islands, which has a very special place in the British consciousness and in British history. And next week I am finally able, for the first time, to come down to see the Islands and their people for myself. I could not be looking forward to it more.
Falkland Islands farmers are being urged to plan for income reductions in the order of 15 to 25% for the season's wool production with the potential for more reductions, MLA Phyl Rendell announced in Legislative Assembly last week.
The Argentine embassy in Montevideo through a Forum Malvinas Uruguay release totally rejected the decision from a group of Uruguayan lawmakers, representing all parties in parliament, accepting an invitation from the British embassy to visit the Falkland Islands.