Argentina Accuses UK Of Violating Agreement After Row Erupts Over Falkland Islands Banner

Published 16 July 2026 · europe

Argentina Accuses UK Of Violating Agreement After Row Erupts Over Falkland Islands Banner Published By, Last Updated: July 16, 2026, 09:55 IST A couple of

Argentina Accuses UK Of Violating Agreement After Row Erupts Over Falkland Islands Banner Published By, Last Updated: July 16, 2026, 09:55 IST A couple of Argentine footballers displayed a political banner following their 2-1 win over England in the world cup semifinal. Rapid Read Argentina's Giovani Lo Celso holds a banner with the words "The Malvinas are Argentine". (AP Photo) The Argentina football team could face sanctions from FIFA, football’s global governing body, after two of its players displayed a banner reading “The Malvinas Are Argentine" following their World Cup victory over England. Argentina’s Foreign Ministry has since accused the United Kingdom of violating bilateral agreements over the Falkland Islands while reaffirming its claim over the disputed territory. Argentina midfielder Giovani Lo Celso was seen on the pitch carrying the banner after his side sealed a dramatic 2-1 victory over England to reach a second consecutive World Cup final on Wednesday. Defender Lisandro Martínez was also seen holding the banner. Las Malvinas is the name Argentina uses for the Falkland Islands, a British Overseas Territory located nearly 300 miles off Argentina’s east coast. The question of sovereignty over the islands has long been a source of tension between the two countries. Argentina and the United Kingdom fought a brief war over the islands in 1982, in which 649 Argentine soldiers and 255 British military personnel were killed.

Britain ultimately retained control of the islands, and the vast majority of their residents have expressed a desire to remain a British Overseas Territory. Argentina, however, has long maintained that it inherited the islands from Spain following its independence in 1816 and that Britain seized control in 1833 through an illegal colonial act. Here’s the statement (translated) issued by Argentina’s Foreign Ministry Falklands Issue: The Argentine Republic Protests the United Kingdom Over the Unauthorized Movement of HMS Medway Toward the Argentine Continental Coast On the instructions of Foreign Minister Gerardo Werthein Quirno, a formal note of protest was submitted on July 13 to the Embassy of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. The note expresses Argentina’s strongest rejection of the movements of the HMS Medway, unlawfully stationed in the Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas), which were not properly notified in accordance with the bilateral agreements and declarations currently in force, and which involved transit through Argentina’s territorial sea. This unilateral action constitutes a violation of the commitments assumed by both governments in the Joint Declaration of September 25, 1991, which replaced its annexes I, II, III, IV, and V, and in the Joint Declaration signed in Madrid on February 15, 1990, specifically section I.2, “Measures to Strengthen Mutual Confidence," paragraph (b) (as amended by the Joint Declaration signed in Buenos Aires and London on July 12, 1993).