DEFIANT Falkland Islanders have put two fingers up to Donald Trump and Argentine President Javier Milei by insisting they want to stay British.
They dismissed “threats and claims” as old hat and vowed to press on development – code for drilling for oil off the coast.
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In a statement the islands Legislative Assembly said their right to be British was enshrined in law and would not be threatened by the two world leaders’ hot air.
They said: “Our future is a matter for the people who live here to decide. That is a right grounded in international law, and it is not altered by the statements of any other government.”
Trump hinted America would not back Britain over the islands due a lack of UK support for his war of choice in Iran.
He said US support for Britain’s claim to the Falkland Islands was currently under review.
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Milei vowed to fight “tooth and nail” for the islands and threatened to sanction companies drilling for oil in the Falklands territorial waters.
The Falklands’ elected government added: “Statements like the ones made this week are not new to us.
“Our long-established community has faced pressure of this kind many times over the decades, and despite this the Islands have continued to grow, develop, and thrive.
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“Threats and claims have never held back the Falkland Islands development in the past, and they will not now.”
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A 2013 referendum saw 99.8 per cent of islanders vote to remain a self-governing Overseas Territory of the United Kingdom.
They said: “That democratic choice is clear, and it stands.
“We remain confident, settled and focused on the future our people have chosen.”
Argentina invaded and captured the islands in 1982 before Margaret Thatcher dispatched a taskforce to win them back.
The US provided Britain with limited but significant support, including logistics and intelligence.
The UK continues to give America limited but significant support for its war of choice in Iran – including logistics support through the use of British bases, intelligence and fighter jets that defend US and UK allies in the Gulf.