Global General

Argentina decries UK refusal to Malvinas talks

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2011-06-17 13:14

BUENOS AIRES - Argentina Thursday slammed Britain for refusing to negotiate on the sovereignty of the Malvinas Islands, also called the Falkland Islands by the British.

One day after British Prime Minister David Cameron told the House of Commons in London that the issue "is not negotiable," President Cristina Fernandez rejected the comments as "mediocre and almost stupid."

Speaking at an event in the northern Misiones province, she also said Argentina would still try to get Britain back to the negotiation table and there is "absolutely no doubt" her country would solve the dispute through dialogue.

Earlier, the Argentine Foreign Ministry also criticized Cameron's words as "a regrettable act of arrogance."

On Wednesday, Cameron also said the issue of the islands' sovereignty would only be negotiated if the residents there, most are of British descendant, want to. And if those inhabitants prefer to stay where they are, the islands "should remain sovereign British territory - full stop, end of story."

Argentina was defeated by Britain in a 74-day war in 1982 over the sovereignty of the South Atlantic islets, which are close to Argentine coasts and faraway from Britain. Tensions over the decades-old dispute built up recently due to intensified oil exploration activities off the islands.