Thu, 14 March 2013
BUENOS AIRES, — Argentine President Cristina Kirchner, her approval rating plummeting, has refused to recognise the results of a referendum in which the people of the disputed Falkland Islands voted to remain British.
The vote in the sparsely populated South Atlantic archipelago that triggered a war between the two nations in 1982 was a "parody," she said. Even the United States, Britain's firmest ally, acknowledged Argentina's claim.
British Prime Minister David Cameron had earlier urged the Latin American country to respect the wishes of 99.8 per cent of the islanders who voted "yes" to staying a self-governing British territory, according to official results.
The islanders organised the vote in response to increasingly bellicose sovereignty rhetoric by Kirchner, and only three of the 1,517 valid ballots — on 92 per cent turnout — were cast against the islands staying under British rule.
Kirchner's government had dismissed the referendum as meaningless and said it would not affect its claims on the Falklands which it calls "Las Malvinas".
She reiterated her displeasure late on Tuesday at an event at the presidential mansion.The vote in the sparsely populated South Atlantic archipelago that triggered a war between the two nations in 1982 was a "parody," she said. Even the United States, Britain's firmest ally, acknowledged Argentina's claim.
British Prime Minister David Cameron had earlier urged the Latin American country to respect the wishes of 99.8 per cent of the islanders who voted "yes" to staying a self-governing British territory, according to official results.
The islanders organised the vote in response to increasingly bellicose sovereignty rhetoric by Kirchner, and only three of the 1,517 valid ballots — on 92 per cent turnout — were cast against the islands staying under British rule.
Kirchner's government had dismissed the referendum as meaningless and said it would not affect its claims on the Falklands which it calls "Las Malvinas".
"What is important today is the United States' position about this kind of parody of a referendum," Kirchner said. "The State Department spokeswoman said that they continue to recognise that there is a sovereignty dispute between Argentina and Britain."
The United States earlier said it took "note" of the islanders' vote, but refused once again to take sides in the dispute.
"The residents have clearly expressed their preference for a continued relationship with the United Kingdom," State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said.
"That said, we obviously recognise that there are competing claims."
Argentina failed to seize the islands back from Britain in the brief 1982 war.
The announcement of the result overnight on Monday sparked jubilation in the islands' tiny capital Stanley, and Cameron said he was "over the moon" at the outcome.
"The Falkland Islanders couldn't have spoken more clearly. They want to remain British and that view should be respected by everybody, including by Argentina," he said.
Cameron, who later telephoned the chairman of the islands' legislative assembly to congratulate him on the result, also warned against any military action by Argentina.
"People should know we will always be there to defend them," he said. — AFP
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