New Argentine President Javier Miley told Sky News that he has begun discussions with the UK over the Falkland Islands, and that he expects future negotiations over sovereignty over British territory.
The comments, made on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum meetings in Davos, follow Mr Miley's first bilateral meeting with the UK – a private session with Foreign Secretary Lord Cameron.
Mr. Mileythe radical liberal who He recently won the Argentine electionsHe pledged during his election campaign that he would gain sovereignty over the islands.
David Cameron in Davos
“We talked about the Falkland Islands and this is a matter for future diplomatic negotiations,” he said shortly after his meeting with Lord Cameron.
These statements will raise controversy, as Britain has said in the past that it has no plans to conduct any diplomatic negotiations regarding the future of the islands.
A British official said: “On the Falkland Islands, the Foreign Secretary and President Milley said they would agree to disagree, and they would do so politely.
He added, “The United Kingdom's position and continued support for the right of the people of the Falkland Islands to self-determination has not changed.”
Miley also delivered a speech to politicians and businessmen gathered in Davos in which he warned that “the Western world is in danger.”
“Those who aim to defend the values of the West have been co-opted by a worldview that inevitably leads to socialism and hence poverty,” he said.
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The issue of sovereignty over the Falkland Islands has long been a source of contention between Britain and Argentina, which fought a short war over the islands in 1982.
Buenos Aires has repeatedly sought to restore negotiations over sovereignty over the Falkland Islands, which Argentina calls Las Malvinas, but the UK has insisted that talks are not on the table as long as the islanders want to remain British.
In a referendum on the sovereignty of the islands in 2013, 99.8% voted in favor of remaining within British territory, while only three voted against.
