Argentine leader says oil firms working off Falklands face sanctions - BBC News BBC Homepage Skip to content Accessibility Help Your account Home News Sport Earth Reel Worklife Travel Culture Future Music TV Weather Sounds More menu More menu Search BBC Home News Sport Earth Reel Worklife Travel Culture Future Music TV Weather Sounds Close menu BBC News Menu Home Climate World UK Business Tech Science Entertainment & Arts Health In Pictures More BBC Verify Newsbeat World Africa Asia Australia Europe Latin America Middle East US & Canada Argentine leader says oil firms working off Falklands face sanctions Image source, Reuters By Will Grant , BBC's Mexico, Central America and Cuba correspondent  and  Chris Graham Published 4 September 2026, 03:01 BST Updated 31 minutes ago Argentina's President, Javier Milei, has heightened tensions with the UK over the Falklands, warning he will impose economic sanctions on firms which exploit oil close to the British overseas territory. In a national address, Milei said the "winds of change" favoured Argentina's claim to the islands, emboldened by signs the US might reconsider its stance of neutrality on the issue. Milei said the Sea Lion oilfield, where a British and an Israeli firm are due to begin exploration work, was a "clear and present danger". More than 40 years after the war over the territory, sovereignty of the archipelago in the south-west Atlantic Ocean remains hotly disputed between Britain and Argentina. BBC News is seeking comment from the UK government on Milei's statement. It reiterated this week that Falkland islanders "are British with a right to determine their own future". Milei announced his sanctions plan surrounded by his cabinet at the presidential palace, reiterating that the Falklands were "historically and legally" Argentinean. The crux was a proposal to introduce a bill to parliament to impose sanctions on energy firms planning to begin oil exploration off the Falklands. The Sea Lion oilfield , arou