The Argentine Government has initiated arbitration proceedings under Annex VII of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea against the United Kingdom to prevent the illegal exploitation of hydrocarbon resources on the Argentine continental shelf around the Malvinas Islands through the project known as "Sea Lion," operated by Navitas Petroleum and Rockhopper Exploration. The Argentine Republic will continue to firmly defend its sovereign rights, using all the peaceful diplomatic, administrative and legal means available to it under national and international law.

The following is a transcription of the Official Statement issued by the Office of the President (original in Spanish):

"Buenos Aires City, 28 September 2026.

The Office of the President informs that, in response to the illegitimate actions of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland in the Malvinas Islands, South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands and their surrounding maritime spaces, the President of the Nation has instructed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the government's legal teams to initiate the arbitration procedure provided for under Annex VII of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, with the aim of preventing the illegitimate exploitation of hydrocarbon resources in the Northern Malvinas Basin through the project known as "Sea Lion," as well as the adoption of any other measure capable of aggravating the situation, in particular the granting of new permits for the exploitation of the natural resources of the Argentine Continental Shelf.

The United Nations General Assembly, through Resolution 2065 (XX), recognised the existence of a sovereignty dispute between the Argentine Republic and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland over the Malvinas Islands, South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands and their surrounding maritime spaces, and called upon both Governments to find a peaceful solution to the dispute through negotiations.

Furthermore, United Nations General Assembly Resolution 31/49 expressly called upon both countries to refrain from taking decisions that would imply a unilateral modification of the situation while the process recommended by the General Assembly is under way.

The unilateral exploitation of the natural resources of the Malvinas Islands, South Georgia and South Sandwich Islands and their surrounding maritime spaces is contrary to international law and causes irreversible and irreparable harm to the sovereign rights of the Argentine Republic.

In this context, the Argentine Republic has formally called upon the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland to adopt, within a period of two weeks, the necessary measures to prevent the commencement or continuation of activities aimed at the exploitation of hydrocarbon resources on the Argentine Continental Shelf. Should the United Kingdom fail to comply with this requirement within the stipulated timeframe, the Argentine Republic will request the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea to order the provisional measures necessary to preserve its sovereign rights over its Continental Shelf.

The Argentine Republic also categorically rejects the response of the United Kingdom to the statement delivered by the President of the Nation, Javier G. Milei, before the United Nations General Assembly. The purported designation of the Malvinas Islands as a "British Overseas Territory" and the unilateral referendum held in 2013, which has not received international recognition, do not alter the existence or the subject matter of the sovereignty dispute recognised by the United Nations.

Finally, it is reported that, following the detection of operations carried out by the company THALES UK LIMITED on the Malvinas Islands–Punta Arenas air route using an aircraft registered in the United Kingdom and without authorisation from the Argentine authorities, the President of the Nation has urgently instructed government teams to initiate the corresponding sanctioning procedures and criminal complaints, as well as the relevant diplomatic measures.

The Argentine Republic will not stand idly by and will continue to firmly defend its sovereign rights, making use of all the diplomatic, administrative and legal tools available under national and international law.

The Malvinas are Argentine."

The official statement (in Spanish) is available at: www.argentina.gob.ar/noticias/comunicado-oficial-numero-166