Mention of the Falkland Islands: EU document heats up London

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Argentina has long laid claim to the small archipelago of only about 3,000 inhabitants in the South Atlantic. However, the British were able to repulse Buenos Aires’ attempt to use military force to take control of the islands during the so-called Falklands War in 1982.

Background to the current excitement is a wording in the closing statement of an EU summit with Latin American and Caribbean countries (CELAC). In addition to the British name “Falkland Islands”, the Spanish name “Islas Malvinas” is also used. One searches in vain for older mentions of the Spanish name in the online archive of the EU.

After the British media took up the issue en masse, Foreign Secretary James Cleverly was forced to state on Thursday that 99.8 percent of the population of the Falkland Islands had voted in a referendum to remain part of the British ‘family’. “Argentina and the EU should listen to their democratic elections,” Cleverly wrote on Twitter.

A spokesman for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak (conservative) had previously spoken of Brussels’ “regrettable choice of words”. It has now rightly been made clear that the position of the EU has not changed.

The EU foreign service said: “EU member states have not changed their views and positions on the Falkland Islands/Islas Malvinas.” However, the advice continued to use both the Spanish and English names. It goes on to say that the EU always listens to and takes note of the views of its partners.

(SDA)

Source: Blick