Argentina files lawsuit against oil firms operating off Malvinas

Argentina’s government has announced legal action against companies with links to an Israeli-British oil project near the Malvinas Islands, as Buenos Aires escalates its sovereignty claim over the disputed territory.

Britain and Argentina fought a 10-week war in 1982 over the South Atlantic islands, a British overseas territory that is known in English as the Falkland Islands.

As President Javier Milei amps up Argentina’s claim over the islands, Buenos Aires on Friday announced it intended to investigate and sanction 45 oil companies working in the area.

On Monday night, the Milei administration confirmed it had filed a criminal complaint against Israeli firm Navitas for drilling for oil off the islands without its authorisation, escalating a new stand-off over the disputed territory.

The lawsuit was filed against Navitas Petroleum Development & Production Ltd, Navitas Petroleum Atlantic United, Navitas Petroleum LP, IHI Associates Inc, and Canadian company Eco Atlantic Oil & Gas Ltd.

These companies “allegedly hold licences granted by the illegitimate government of the United Kingdom [in the Malvinas] for the exploration and/or exploitation of hydrocarbons in the North Malvinas Basin,” the Presidency said in a statement.

“The criminal complaint was filed yesterday [Monday] against the companies involved in the illegal exploration and exploitation of the northern Malvinas basin,” confirmed Milei’s press spokesperson Adrián Ravier at a press conference Tuesday.

The Sea Lion oil field involves two private firms, Britain’s Rockhopper Exploration and Israel’s Navitas Petroleum, who are looking to establish a large-scale operation about 220 kilometres (137 miles) from the islands.

Extraction will begin in 2028, according to the firms.

The government also launched legal action against Canadian company Eco Atlantic, which has a licence to explore next to the Sea Lion field.

Argentina’s government argues that the arrangements breach national law, which prohibits the exploration and exploitation of hydrocarbons on its continental shelf without government authorisation.

A 2011 law establishes penalties of up to 20 years of disqualification from operating in Argentina and up to 15 years in prison for the offence.

The legal action targets shareholders and “all directors, managers, trustees, members of the supervisory board, administrators, agents and representatives,” as well as anyone who “may have been involved in the punishable act,” said the statement.

The complaint “constitutes a concrete step to protect natural resources and safeguard sovereignty” over the archipelago,” said the Presidency.

Milei is also pushing for a law to toughen existing sanctions and has promised new funding for an integrated naval base in Argentina’s south, a project first announced in 2022.

The Malvinas are located about 600 km east of Argentina’s southernmost tip and administered by Britain. The 1982 war ended with Argentine surrender after 74 days of conflict that killed 649 Argentines and 255 British troops.

The Sea Lion oil field is situated around 220 kilometres (137 miles) from the islands.

In 2013, Argentina punished Rockhopper with a 20-year disqualification from operating in Argentine territory over its “illegal and clandestine” operations.

Navitas received the same sanction in April 2022.

The islands hit headlines again in recent days, after US President Donald Trump threatened to review Washington’s neutrality in the dispute, sending a warning to Britain that was welcomed by Milei.

Emboldened by Trump, Milei has set his sights on stopping the British-Israeli oil project near the islands, arguing it violates a UN resolution calling for both Britain and Argentina to desist from unilateral actions in the islands until their dispute is resolved.

In a speech Thursday, Milei renewed claims to the islands after Trump suggested Washington is reviewing its historically neutral position on the territory.

“There are winds of change in the world that are favourable to our claim,” Milei said.

The La Libertad Avanza leader’s address prompted London to assert its “unshakeable” claim over the islands.

“The Falklands are British because Falkland Islanders choose to be British,” British Defence Secretary Wes Streeting wrote on social media on Friday.

The islanders themselves voted overwhelmingly in 2013 to remain British.

– TIMES/AFP/NA