Javier Milei, the admirer of Margaret Thatcher, is Trump’s puppet, Legislator Del Caño said.
On Friday, several leaders of Argentina’s political opposition accused far-right President Javier Milei of making opportunistic use of the sovereignty claim over the Malvinas Islands, which have remained occupied by the United Kingdom since 1833.
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“It is not geopolitical strategy; it is electoral opportunism,” said legislator Jorge Taiana, who previously served as foreign minister and defense minister.
On Thursday night, Milei announced measures to accelerate and toughen sanctions against oil companies operating in the Malvinas Islands without Argentina’s authorization. He also mentioned plans to promote the construction of a military base in the country’s far south, at one of the points closest to the archipelago.
“In 2022, when I was defense minister, we began construction of the Integrated Naval Base in Ushuaia, which Milei halted for three years. Currently, amid the growing interest in the Malvinas Islands cause, he is once again reactivating the issue,” Taiana said.
He stressed that Milei’s announcements “come late,” after “loosening regulations and making concessions that facilitated the United Kingdom’s advance” over Argentine interests.
Agustin Rossi, a Peronist legislator and former defense minister, also criticized Milei for allocating funds to build the Ushuaia base only now. He recalled that the far-right president offered to build the base jointly with the United States in 2024 ago and “contradictorily, weeks ago they put up for sale land adjacent to the base.”
Rossi also referred to statements by U.S. President Donald Trump about his willingness to review his country’s position of neutrality in the sovereignty dispute between Argentina and the United Kingdom.
“Milei talks about sovereignty and in the same speech justifies that he can do what he says he wants to do because of his alliance with Trump. He should and could have done it since Dec. 10, 2023, because he is the president of the Argentine nation,” the lawmaker said.
Left-wing lawmaker Nicolas del Caño accused Milei of providing his services to the United States in its dispute with Great Britain and using the legitimate sovereignty claim over the Malvinas Islands to regain ground ahead of the 2027 presidential elections.
“Milei, the avowed admirer of war criminal Margaret Thatcher, is Trump’s puppet. Out with the English from the Malvinas. Out with the Yankees from Latin America,” Del Caño said on social media.
Milei’s announcements came as Israeli oil company Navitas and British company Rockhopper accelerate development of their Sea Lion project in waters north of the Malvinas. These companies seek to begin oil extraction in March 2028 without Argentina’s authorization.
Meanwhile, Myriam Bregman, a left-wing lawmaker and former presidential candidate, questioned Milei’s decision to send Congress a bill to create a “National Security Council.”
“That announcement was accompanied by a request for special powers to act. It is very dangerous because, obviously, it will not be to pursue Benjamin Netanyahu or those who sent Navitas to the Malvinas Islands,” she said, alluding to the sympathies that the far-right Argentine president has for Zionist causes.
Trump is butthurt. Britain refused to join his catastrophic war of choice against Iran, so he went public looking for a way to bruise Britain. He found the Falklands.
Trump does not have to say “invade.” He just shrugs on camera that America is “re-evaluating” the Malvinas,… pic.twitter.com/5g6eafhd2t
— Bill Madden (@maddenifico) September 4, 2026
Milei’s Rhetoric on The Malvinas Changes According to What Suits Him
On repeated occasions, Javier Milei has sought to distance himself from a hardline assertion of Argentine sovereignty over the Malvinas, citing alleged pragmatic reasons sweetened by his libertarian, anti-statist, and pro-market worldview.
Using rhetorical devices, he had characterized his position as support for Argentina’s sovereignty claim combined with a preference for “a long-term” diplomatic solution.
During the 2023 presidential campaign, Milei said Argentina’s sovereignty over the islands was “non-negotiable,” but rejected the idea of recovering them through military means.
Instead, he argued that Argentina would have to negotiate with the UK and persuade the islanders that becoming Argentine was in their interest. He also advocated closer relations with Britain and said the future of the islands should consider their residents’ wishes.
In a 2024 interview with the BBC, Milei said the Malvinas were “in the hands of the United Kingdom” and that he did not regard a visit by then-British Foreign Secretary David Cameron to the islands as a provocation.
At the same time, Milei insisted Argentina would not abandon its sovereignty claim and said he sought a peaceful negotiation that could eventually lead to the islands returning to Argentina.
Another controversial element of his stance has been his admiration for former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher, who led Britain during the 1982 Malvinas War.
In 2023, Milei praised Thatcher as one of the “great leaders in the history of humanity,” and in 2024 he again described her as “brilliant,” while acknowledging that Argentina lost the war.
His conciliatory language toward Britain and emphasis on the islanders’ wishes drew criticism from Argentines, who argued that it weakened the country’s traditional position on sovereignty.
teleSUR/ JF
Sources: EFE – teleSUR – Mercosur Press
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