EU's use of Malvinas Islands in dispute with Argentina enrages Britain

The UK government has criticized the European Union, saying it regrets that it does not use the correct words to call the British-controlled Falkland Islands and used the name Malvinas, the name preferred by Argentina.

In a statement from the summit of the European Union and Latin America on Tuesday, the islands in the South Atlantic Ocean, disputed between UK and Argentina, were called by the two names of Britain, Falkland, and the name of Argentina, Malvinas. It was seen as a diplomatic victory by Argentina, which has long claimed ownership of the islands.

The Malvinas Islands (Islas Malvinas), which the UK calls the Falkland Islands, is a strategic archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean. The archipelago with an area of ​​12,000 square kilometers includes two western and eastern parts and 776 smaller islands.

Malvinas or Falkland, as a British overseas territory, has a self-governing system and the UK is responsible for its defense and foreign affairs.

On Wednesday, British diplomats asked the European Union to clarify about the decision and the position of the European Union on the matter. A European Union official, recalling Brexit and the UK withdrawal from EU, said that it’s the position of 27 member states of the Union and 33 member states of Slack. He added that if Britain was a member of the European Union, it might be able to react on the matter.

Max Blain, a spokesman for Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, said EU officials had since "clarified their position".

Earlier, Argentina's Foreign Minister Santiago Cafirero said the summit's statement was a renewed call from the international community to Britain to fulfill its commitments to resume sovereignty talks with Argentina.

But the European Union said in a statement that it was not in a position to express "any position" on the matter, saying that member states had not changed their position on it.

The Malvinas Islands are situated just over 480 km from the Argentine coast in the South Atlantic Ocean. The UK has occupied the archipelago since 1833.

SS