2013-02-01 22:02
Port Stanley, Falklands (Picture: Supplied)
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London - Britain told Argentina on Friday it was
unwilling to discuss the disputed status of the Falkland Islands unless talks
included the local pro-British authorities there too, deepening a diplomatic
spat over the South Atlantic archipelago.
Britain set out its position after visiting Argentine
Foreign Minister Hector Timerman rejected a London meeting with his British
counterpart William Hague on Thursday because he objected to the presence of
Falkland islanders.
"We're disappointed by the decision," a spokesperson
for British Prime Minister David Cameron said, referring to Timerman's refusal
to meet Hague and the Falklanders.
"The position is that we're not prepared to talk
over the heads of the Falkland islanders about matters that directly affect
their status as a British overseas territory or indeed their economy or any
other issues."
The two countries fought a 10-week war in 1982 over the
Falklands, which are part of Britain's self-governing overseas territories, but
which Argentina calls Las Malvinas and claims as its own.
Britain won, but Argentina began to press its claim again
last year after oil exploration began in local waters.
Referring to the Falklanders as "settlers",
Timerman said only a bilateral meeting between Argentina and Britain would be
acceptable and invited Hague to Buenos Aires to discuss the Falklands
face-to-face.
But Cameron's spokesperson said that Britain's position
over the Falklands and over any talks relating to it was based on the principle
that the Falklanders should be involved.
She said Hague's offer of talks still stood if Timerman
changed his mind.
"It's up to the Falklands and the Falkland islanders
how they want to run themselves. They choose to be British and it's their right
to self-determination and that's enshrined in a UN charter," she said.
Separately, a statement from the British Foreign Office
said the government remained "concerned about the Argentine government's
behaviour" towards the islanders.
President Cristina Fernandez last year marked the 30th
anniversary of the Falklands war with a diplomatic campaign to assert her
country's sovereignty claim.
In 1982 Argentine forces seized the Falklands, but a
naval task force and ground troops dispatched by then prime minister Margaret
Thatcher recaptured the islands.
London has refused to start talks on sovereignty with Buenos
Aires unless the roughly 3 000 islanders, known as "Kelpers", want
them.
The islanders show no signs of wanting to break with
Britain and are expected to affirm as much in a referendum due to be held in
March.
The dispute has not deterred British energy companies
from exploring on the islands, which are expected to start producing their
first oil in 2017.
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