Argentina is renewing its claim to the Falkland Islands. The country’s vice president, Victoria Villarruel, is urging the islanders to “go home” to England.

The Falkland Islands are an archipelago in the South Atlantic, just over 500 kilometers from the South American coast. The islands, home to fewer than 4,000 residents, have been under British control since at least the early 19th century.

For roughly as long, Argentina has laid claim to Las Malvinas, the Spanish name for the islands. Argentinians argue they have a stronger right to the islands, as heirs to the Spanish viceroyalties in the Americas. Both Britain and Spain claimed the islands in the 18th century; they were uninhabited when Europeans first discovered them.

In 1982 Argentina even invaded the Falkland Islands in what became known as the Falklands War, but was defeated by a British task force after a two and a half month conflict. Since then, the islands have remained British territory.

Repeated Falklands Claim

Argentina has never formally relinquished its claim to take back the Falkland Islands. And now, the archipelago has become a bargaining chip in American president Donald Trump’s policy towards Europe.

At the end of last week, an internal email from the U.S. Department of Defense headquarters, the Pentagon, was leaked. In it, Deputy Secretary Elbridge Colby proposes various ways to pressure Europe, as retaliation for not supporting the U.S. and Israel’s war against Iran.

One suggestion mentioned is to expel Spain from the NATO military alliance. Another is for the U.S. to reconsider its stance on Europe’s colonial territories—one of which is the Falkland Islands.

Argentina’s president, Javier Milei, a close ally of Trump, has been quick to try to take advantage of the situation.

“We are doing everything humanly possible for the Malvinas Islands to return to Argentine control. Sovereignty is non-negotiable, but it has to be done thoughtfully. It must be done with reason,” he said on his radio show last Friday.

“Go Home to England”

Milei is not the only Argentine representative making statements on the Falklands issue. The same day as his radio show, his foreign minister, Pablo Quirno, also made comments.

In a post on the social media platform X, Quirno wrote that the Falkland Islands have been occupied by Britain since 1833, and that he wants to “resume bilateral negotiations with the UK to reach a peaceful and final resolution to the sovereignty dispute, and put an end to the special and unique colonial situation that exists.”

Argentina’s vice president Victoria Villarruel also argues that Britain “must” agree to negotiations over the islands, and that those living there “are not part of the discussion.”

“If they feel English, they can return the thousands of kilometers to where their country lies. In any case, they are not a party to this discussion between states,” asserts Argentina’s vice president, Victoria Villarruel.