In brief
In light of a recent report suggesting the US may reassess its position on the British claim to the Falkland Islands, Downing Street has reaffirmed that sovereignty rests with the UK. A spokesperson emphasized the UK's commitment to the self-determination rights of the islanders, highlighting their overwhelming support to remain a UK overseas territory.
Downing Street has said the sovereignty of the Falkland Islands 'rests with the UK', following a report the US could review its position on the British claim to the territory. The same internal Pentagon email, which was first reported by Reuters, suggested measures the US could pursue in retaliation against allies it believed had failed to support its campaign in Iran.Asked about the report, a No 10 spokesman said: 'The Falkland Islands have hugely voted overwhelmingly in favour of remaining a UK overseas territory, and we've always stood behind the islanders' right to self-determination and the fact that sovereignty rests with the UK.' BBC News has not seen the Pentagon email.The prime minister's official spokesman also said the government 'could not be clearer about the UK's position', and that 'sovereignty rests with the UK and the islanders' right to self-determination is paramount.' He continued: 'We've expressed this position previously clearly and consistently to successive US administrations and nothing is going to change that.'BBC News has contacted the Pentagon about the reported email. The Falkland Islands review was one of a number of measures suggested in the email, including that the US could seek to suspend Spain from the NATO military alliance over its strong opposition to the Iran war. A NATO official told the BBC that the organisation's founding treaty 'does not foresee any provision for suspension of NATO membership, or expulsion.'Earlier, Spain's Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said: 'We do not work based on emails. We work with official documents and official positions taken, in this case, by the government of the United States.'The Falkland Islands, a British overseas territory in the south-west Atlantic Ocean, remain the subject of a sovereignty dispute between Britain and Argentina. A 10-week conflict in 1982 was triggered when Argentina's military dictator, Leopoldo Galtieri, ordered his country's forces to invade the islands. Then Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher's government sent a naval task force to recapture them. Argentine forces surrendered, but the country still claims sovereignty over the Falklands, which it calls the Malvinas and which lie about 300 miles east of Argentina.
