The Falkland Islands, called las islas Malvinas by Argentina, form an archipelago located in the South Atlantic. The United Kingdom administers the territory, while Argentina maintains that it is part of its national sovereignty.
The controversy combines historical, legal, and political arguments, in addition to control over natural resources and the memory of the 1982 war. Neither side has renounced its position.
Argentina maintains that it inherited the rights over the archipelago from Spain after its independence and that it exercised acts of administration on the islands during the first decades of the 19th century.
The Argentine government considers that the United Kingdom interrupted that presence in 1833 through the use of force and that since then it has occupied a territory that belongs to Argentina. This interpretation is part of the official position submitted in June 2026 to the Organization of American States (OAS).
The Argentine Constitution also establishes that the recovery of full exercise of sovereignty over the islands constitutes a permanent objective, always by peaceful means and respecting the way of life of their inhabitants.
What the United Kingdom maintains
The United Kingdom argues that the inhabitants of the islands have the right to decide their political future. London assures that it will not negotiate a change of sovereignty as long as the islanders wish to remain linked to the United Kingdom.
In the referendum held in 2013, 99.8% of voters supported maintaining the status of a British Overseas Territory. The British government considers this result the basis of its argument on the right to self-determination. Argentina, for its part, does not recognize that this consultation resolves the dispute, understanding that the current population was established after the British occupation.
What the United Nations says
Resolution 2065 of the United Nations General Assembly, approved in 1965, recognizes the existence of a sovereignty dispute and urges Argentina and the United Kingdom to negotiate a peaceful solution.
Argentina uses this resolution to demand the reopening of bilateral talks. The United Kingdom responds that any negotiation must respect the will expressed by the inhabitants of the islands.
The UN has not attributed the sovereignty of the archipelago to either country.
The 1982 war
The conflict reached its most serious moment on April 2, 1982, when the Argentine military dictatorship occupied the islands. The United Kingdom responded with a military operation to recover the territory. The war concluded in June with the Argentine surrender and left hundreds dead on both sides.
The defeat accelerated the end of the Argentine dictatorship, but did not put an end to the claim of sovereignty, which has continued through diplomatic channels ever since.
The OAS calls for renewed negotiations
The Organization of American States has approved several resolutions calling for both governments to resume negotiations to reach a peaceful solution.
The organization maintains the issue of the Falklands as a matter of hemispheric interest and states that it will continue to address it until an agreement is reached. Argentina reiterated in June 2026 that it will continue to promote this diplomatic path. The United Kingdom responded that any solution must take into account, as a central element, the will of the inhabitants of the archipelago.
Oil, fishing, and strategic position
The dispute also affects control over the surrounding waters, fishing resources, and potential hydrocarbon deposits. Argentina rejects the licenses granted by the island authorities to exploit resources in the disputed areas. The United Kingdom and the Government of the Falklands maintain that they can manage these resources under British administration.
The strategic position of the archipelago in the South Atlantic also adds a military and geopolitical dimension that continues to hinder any agreement between the two countries.