MercoPress https://en.mercopress.com/ South Atlantic News Agency en Copyright 2026, MercoPress. https://en.mercopress.com/web/img/en/mercopress-logo.gif MercoPress http://en.mercopress.com/ <![CDATA[US fears Falklands-related sanctions could hit American companies]]> According to Clarín, Washington has put forward two options: freezing the bill, its preferred choice, or amending it so that US companies are excluded The US government has conveyed to Javier Milei’s administration its concern that the National Sovereignty Defence bill, which toughens sanctions against those involved in exploiting resources in the Falklands, could reach American companies, the Argentine newspaper Clarín reported, citing unnamed officials in Washington.

]]> Sun, 18 Oct 2026 21:56:00 GMT <![CDATA[Royal Navy urged to replace defective Ice Patrol HMS Protector]]> HMS Protector role helped to maintain a sovereign, reassuring, and versatile presence in the South Atlantic and the British Antarctic Territory The Royal Navy's only ice patrol vessel has been towed into Devonport, reportedly with a double engine failure, raising fresh concerns over how the news will be interpreted by Argentina. HMS Protector fulfils an icebreaking role to monitor the demilitarized Antarctic and support safe navigation for scientific research in challenging conditions.

]]> Fri, 16 Oct 2026 13:59:00 GMT <![CDATA[The Falklands dispute threatens Argentina’s bid to join the trans-Pacific trade pact]]> The possibility was raised in the House of Commons by Conservative MP Wendy Morton, who urged the government to prepare to oppose Argentina’s application if threats over the islands continue The escalating dispute between Argentina and the United Kingdom over the Sea Lion oil project north of the Falklands has spilled into trade: London, a member of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, has not ruled out using its position to stall Argentina’s bid to join the pact, which requires the consensus of all its members. The British government says Buenos Aires’s conduct raises “very serious questions about its reliability as a partner”.

]]> Fri, 16 Oct 2026 10:07:00 GMT <![CDATA[Argentina abstains on a Russian UN resolution on colonialism and draws criticism]]> Several speakers questioned Russia’s credibility in presenting it given its invasion of Ukraine. Brazil, Uruguay and Mexico were among the countries that voted in favour Argentina abstained on Thursday in a vote by the UN General Assembly’s Fourth Committee on a Russian-sponsored draft on “contemporary forms of colonialism”, a decision that Buenos Aires province’s government minister, opposition figure Carlos Bianco, linked to President Javier Milei’s alignment with the United States and to Argentina’s strategy over the Falklands.

]]> Fri, 16 Oct 2026 09:40:00 GMT <![CDATA[Argentina’s bill toughening sanctions over Sea Lion stalls in Congress]]> The bill, sent to Congress in September, has 133 articles. The first 40 repeal the 2011 law penalising hydrocarbon exploration not authorised by Argentina and create a broader regime with fines The National Sovereignty Defence bill, with which Javier Milei’s government seeks to toughen sanctions against those involved in exploiting resources in the Falklands, failed to secure committee approval in the Chamber of Deputies and will not reach the special session planned for October 21, according to the Argentine press. The opposition is demanding that the text, which besides sanctions reforms security, defence and intelligence, be split.

]]> Thu, 15 Oct 2026 20:59:00 GMT <![CDATA[Badenoch accuses Farage of trading Chagos for Trump’s silence on the Falklands]]> “There is no pride in our country in the way he talks about us. This is careless, loose talk from a man who wants to be responsible for Britain’s national security,” added Badenoch British Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch has called “humiliating” a proposal by Reform UK leader Nigel Farage to offer US President Donald Trump the Chagos archipelago in exchange for him to stop talking about the Falklands. “Giving away British territory in return for someone keeping quiet is not a deal. It is humiliating,” she told The Telegraph.

]]> Wed, 14 Oct 2026 22:05:00 GMT <![CDATA[Farage proposes offering Trump Diego Garcia in exchange for his silence on the Falklands]]> “I’d have gone in and said, ‘Right, you know what mate? Chagos, it’s yours. Diego Garcia, in perpetuity, the most strategic American military base in the world’,” Farage said Reform UK leader c has said that, if he were prime minister, he would offer US President Donald Trump the use in perpetuity of the Diego Garcia military base, in the Chagos archipelago, in exchange for him to stop talking about the Falklands. The proposal sparked a clash with Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch, who called it “humiliating”, and prompted the White House to come to Farage’s defence.

]]> Wed, 14 Oct 2026 21:53:00 GMT <![CDATA[What are the red notices Argentina has sought from Interpol over Sea Lion]]> The chief executive of the islands’ government, Andrea Clausen, acknowledged that the use of Interpol poses a threat Argentina has requested Interpol red notices against individuals linked to the Sea Lion oil project north of the Falklands, and the United Kingdom has asked the organisation to reject them as “politically motivated”, according to the British newspaper The Guardian. Interpol responded by reaffirming Article 3 of its constitution, which prohibits any intervention or activity of a political character.

]]> Wed, 14 Oct 2026 21:45:00 GMT <![CDATA[Argentina asks the law of the sea tribunal to halt Sea Lion and bar new oil permits]]> The measures are sought pending the constitution of the arbitral tribunal under Annex VII of the Convention, proceedings Argentina launched with a notification to the United Kingdom on September 28 Argentina has asked the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea to order the United Kingdom to prevent the development of the Sea Lion oil project north of the Falklands and to refrain from granting new permits to exploit the resources of the disputed continental shelf, according to a statement published by the Hamburg-based tribunal. The hearing will be set “at the earliest possible date”.

]]> Tue, 13 Oct 2026 23:03:00 GMT <![CDATA[Miliband: Falklands residents have the right to develop their resources “as they see fit”]]> “We will always stand up for the Falkland Islanders, their right to determine their own future, and their right to pursue legitimate economic development,” he added British Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband said on Tuesday that the people of the Falkland Islands “have a right to develop their natural resources as they see fit”, as he announced on X the British government’s measures to protect companies and individuals from Argentine sanctions.

]]> Tue, 13 Oct 2026 19:03:00 GMT