The statement attributed to President Javier Milei by the British newspaper The Telegraph— "the territory should be returned through negotiation and when the islanders wish" —has unleashed a political and legal storm in Argentina. What the president sees as a gesture of "commercial maturity," those committed to national sovereignty view as a diplomatic setback of 60 years and a potential cause of poor performance.

Tierra del Fuego demands an urgent rectification

The governor of Tierra del Fuego, Antarctica and the South Atlantic Islands , Gustavo Melella , was emphatic in demanding an immediate clarification. "Accepting the notion of the islanders' 'wishes' not only contradicts Argentina's historical position, but would also violate our National Constitution," he stated.

Melella recalled the importance of UN Resolution 2065 (XX) , which establishes respect for the interests of the inhabitants , but never their wishes , since it concerns an implanted population. The president warned about the "Ihlen Declaration," an international precedent where the public statements of a Head of State legally bound his country, causing irreversible territorial losses.

An Anglophile position that had already been taken on April 2nd

Milei's current statement to the London press is not an isolated outburst, but rather a reaffirmation of a line of discourse he had already expressed on April 2nd , during the official ceremony for Veterans' Day and the Day of Remembrance for the Fallen. On that occasion, in a speech that generated deep unease among veterans' organizations, the president referred to the islanders as "Malvinenses" and stated that his objective was to transform Argentina into such a power that the archipelago's inhabitants would "prefer to be Argentinian" and decide to "vote for us with their feet." With these words, the president had already begun to implicitly endorse the self-determination of the population he had placed on the islands, departing from the constitutional mandate that requires respect for their "interests" but never for their sovereign "desires." For these remarks, days later the president was declared persona non grata by the Ushuaia City Council.

Rio Grande: "It's a legal and historical mistake"

From the National Capital of Vigil, the mayor of Río Grande, Martín Pérez , described Milei's remarks as a deplorable form of "political self-promotion" at the expense of 47 million Argentinians. "The Malvina Islands are Argentinian, regardless of what their illegal occupiers decide. Their term expires in 24 months, but the Malvinas cause is a matter of national policy that transcends us," Pérez declared.

The specter of betrayal and the role of ex-combatants

The CECIM La Plata went further, drawing a direct parallel with the last dictatorship. "Milei is leading us toward a betrayal like Galtieri's in 1982," they stated in a press release. According to the La Plata veterans, the President is "implementing the Foreign Office's strategy," allowing the United Kingdom to consolidate a NATO military stronghold that now occupies a territory 23 times larger than the original islands, dangerously projecting itself toward Antarctica.

Similarly, Daniel Lillo , from the Rawson Veterans Center , expressed his "sadness" at seeing a president dependent on the will of the usurpers. " The Malvinas cause is not negotiable for the sake of the heroes who defended it," he emphasized.

Legal Implications: Treason?

Activist and national deputy Juan Grabois warned that, if the statements are confirmed, they would "objectively constitute the crime of treason." According to Grabois, if the President did not make such statements, he should demand an immediate retraction from The Telegraph to prevent his words from being used as evidence against Argentina in international forums.