Mercosur (Parlasur) parliamentarians are seeking a strong condemnation from the South American organization of the "Getting to Know My Neighbors in the Malvina Islands" competition. This is a British government initiative that invites university students from Argentina, Uruguay, and Paraguay to travel to the Malvina Islands.

The declaration, promoted by parliamentarians Gustavo Arrieta and Alejandro Deanes , describes the event as an attempt at "cultural and political manipulation" and condemns the British strategy of legitimizing its occupation of the disputed territory.

The project was launched in response to the sixth edition of this competition, in which participants must submit a one-minute video explaining why they would like to meet their "Malvina Islands neighbors." The winners will receive an all-expenses-covered trip to the islands.

A strategy of "public diplomacy"

The parliamentarians' initiative emphasizes that this competition is part of a "British public diplomacy strategy" seeking to consolidate its control over the Malvinas and give a semblance of normalcy to its occupation. By referring to the inhabitants as "neighbors" and the archipelago as the "Malvinas," the United Kingdom is attempting to establish a narrative that ignores the island's status as a disputed territory established by the United Nations.

Furthermore, they call for condemnation of the announced participation of the self-proclaimed "Kelper government" in the Prado 2025 Expo in Montevideo, Uruguay, calling this event an act of "regional institutional legitimization" of the British initiative.

Call to regional action

Therefore, in their draft resolution, the parliamentarians urge the governments of the member countries, especially those of Paraguay and Uruguay, to express a clear position in defense of Argentina's territorial integrity. They also urged them to avoid any action that could be interpreted as institutional recognition of an entity not recognized under international law. They also urged the organization of Expo Prado 2025 to disassociate itself from any participation in the competition and any related activities, in line with the region's commitment to the Malvinas cause, which has been supported by multiple resolutions from organizations such as UNASUR and CELAC.