Argentina has long claimed it inherited the islands from Spain after its independence in 1816 and that Britain took control in 1833 through an illegal colonial act

International News via Reuters:

Argentine President Javier Milei, a libertarian who has long cited former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher as one of his political role models, has recently sharpened his public tone on the Falkland Islands, a contrast from the moderate approach he has previously adopted as he’s sought closer ties with the West.

Unlike his left-leaning predecessors, who routinely reaffirmed Argentina’s sovereignty claim to the South Atlantic islands — known in Argentina as Las Malvinas — Milei, who has called for bilateral negotiations with Britain, had drawn criticism for not emphasizing the issue enough. 

On Friday though, hours after Reuters exclusively reported that an internal Pentagon email suggested reviewing the U.S. position on the disputed archipelago as retaliation for Britain’s stance on the Iran war, Milei shot off a fiery post on X, saying Las Malvinas “were, are and will always be Argentine.” 

Argentina has long claimed it inherited the islands from Spain after its independence in 1816 and that Britain took control in 1833 through an illegal colonial act. Britain, under Thatcher’s government, and Argentina fought a brief ​war over the islands in 1982, in which 649 Argentine and 255 British service members died, ​⁠after Argentina invaded in a failed bid to take them.

Four decades on, the islands still stir raw emotion in Argentina, where the memory of the war is painted onto Buenos Aires city walls as portraits of fallen heroes, and where some sports clubs bar clothing bearing the British flag. A national holiday marks the anniversary of the war.

The fresh tension between the U.S. and UK offers Milei a potential rallying cry as his approval ratings sink to their lowest levels, weighed down by rising monthly inflation and corruption scandals, making the cause one the president could seek to amplify, experts said. 

“The fight for the Falklands is a national obsession in Argentina, and there is no upside to downplaying it,” said Benjamin Gedan, director of the Latin America program at the Stimson Center in Washington. “Though Milei is not known for pandering to his opponents, he might find the Falklands to be an irresistible opportunity for a rally-around-the-flag boost in his popularity.”

A spokesperson for Milei did not respond to a request for comment. 

‘PROGRESS LIKE NEVER BEFORE’

  Milei has previously raised questions about his resolve on the islands. During his presidential campaign, he praised fellow libertarian Thatcher, who ordered the military operation to retake the Falklands, as one of the world’s “greatest leaders,” drawing condemnation from veterans who said he showed no respect for fallen comrades. 

Milei criticized politicians who “beat their chests” over sovereignty without results in a 2024 interview with the BBC. He later drew backlash by saying Argentina wants islanders “to one day decide to vote for us,” echoing Britain’s view that residents have the right to self-determination. In 2013, the islanders voted overwhelmingly in a referendum to stay under British rule.

Last week, though, he said in an interview with a streaming platform that Argentina was “making progress like never before” on the islands issue.

Guillermo Carmona, a former secretary for Argentina’s foreign ministry’s Malvinas, Antarctica and South Atlantic office under the previous center-left government, said the time was now for Argentina to “take advantage of the fissures that are being produced.”

The U.S. has traditionally avoided taking sides on the sovereignty of the islands, but recognizes they are administered by Britain. 

The U.S. under President Donald Trump, who has referred to Milei as his “favorite president,” could have participated as a third-party in any negotiations between Argentina and Britain, but, Gedan said, the leaked Pentagon letter makes that possibility less likely now as the U.S. has showed its hand in potentially favoring Argentina.

For now, despite the political buzz, the status quo is unlikely to change, analysts said.

“It’s difficult for me to think that the United States can force Britain to modify its position if it changes its own, since Britain is a strategic ally of the U.S.,” said Argentine historian Federico Lorenz. 

Reporting by Leila Miller; Editing by Cassandra Garrison and Alistair Bell

The loss of the UAE, a longstanding OPEC member, could weaken the group, which has usually sought to show a united front despite internal disagreements over geopolitics and production quotas

International News via Reuters:

The United Arab Emirates said on Tuesday it was quitting OPEC, dealing a heavy blow to the oil producers’ group as an unprecedented energy crisis triggered by the Iran war exposes discord among Gulf nations.

The loss of the UAE, a longstanding OPEC member, could weaken the group, which has usually sought to show a united front despite internal disagreements over geopolitics and production quotas.

UAE Energy Minister Suhail Mohamed al-Mazrouei told Reuters the decision was taken after a careful look at the regional power’s energy strategies.

Asked whether the UAE consulted with OPEC’s de facto leader and regional heavyweight Saudi Arabia, he said the UAE did not raise the issue with any other country.

“This is a policy decision, it has been done after a careful look at current and future policies related to level of production,” said the energy minister.

The UAE’s announcement trimmed gains in oil prices on Tuesday.

PRODUCTION CONSTRAINED BY IRAN WAR 

OPEC Gulf producers have been struggling to ship exports through the Strait of Hormuz, a chokepoint between Iran and Oman through which a fifth of the world’s crude oil and liquefied natural gas normally passes, because of Iranian threats and attacks against vessels.

Mazrouei said the UAE’s move, in which it will leave OPEC and OPEC+ as of May 1, would not have a huge impact on the market because of the constraints in the strait.

The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and allies including Russia are known collectively as OPEC+, and the UAE was their fourth-largest producer. Together they controlled nearly half the world’s oil before the war.

The International Energy Agency said OPEC+ saw its share of global oil output fall to 44% in March from about 48% in February. It is likely to fall further in April as production shut-ins become more pronounced.

“This opens the door for the UAE to gain global market share when the geopolitical situation normalises,” said Monica Malik, chief economist at ADCB.

The exit should be positive for consumers and the broader global economy, she added.

The UAE is a regional business and financial hub and one of Washington’s most important allies. It has pursued an assertive foreign policy and carved its own sphere of influence across the Middle East and Africa.

The UAE has recently doubled down on its relationships with the United States and Israel, with which it opened ties in the 2020 Abraham Accords, especially after coming under attack during the Iran war. It views the relationship with Israel as a critical lever for regional influence and a unique channel to Washington.

WIN FOR TRUMP

The UAE’s exit from OPEC represents a win for U.S. President Donald Trump, who in a 2018 address to the U.N. General Assembly accused the organisation of “ripping off the rest of the world” by inflating oil prices.

Trump has also linked U.S. military support for the Gulf with oil prices, saying that while the U.S. defends OPEC members they “exploit this by imposing high oil prices”. 

The UAE’s departure came after Anwar Gargash, the diplomatic adviser for the UAE president, criticised the Arab and Gulf response to recent Iranian attacks in a session at the Gulf Influencers Forum on Monday.

Some Gulf leaders met in person on Tuesday in Saudi Arabia, a summit that a Gulf official said aimed to craft a response to the thousands of Iranian missile and drone strikes their nations have faced since the U.S. and Israel launched their war with Iran in late February.

The UAE’s OPEC exit also comes as global spare capacity hovers at historically low levels, leaving the oil market increasingly tight.

Operating outside the producer group allows the UAE to fully leverage its position as a supplier of some of the world’s lowest-cost and lowest-carbon barrels.

Mazrouei noted the UAE has been a member of OPEC and OPEC+ for a long time, but he said the world would demand more energy, suggesting his country’s move will help meet those needs.

Additional reporting by Nayera Abdallah and Yousef Saba; Writing by Michael Georgy; Editing by Aidan Lewis

The EU adopted minimum standards to combat violence against women for the first time in 2024, but a proposed article to create a common definition of rape was dropped after opposition from several member states

International News via Reuters:

European Parliament lawmakers voted on Tuesday in favour of a consent-based definition of rape — known as “only yes means yes” — and urged the European Commission to propose legislation establishing EU-wide rules.

The EU adopted minimum standards to combat violence against women for the first time in 2024, but a proposed article to create a common definition of rape was dropped after opposition from several member states.

“Silence, lack of resistance, the absence of a ‘no’, previous consent, past sexual conduct, or any current or previous relationship must not be interpreted as consent,” the Parliament said in a statement after the vote on the report.

The report also recognises two trauma responses, clarifying that neither can be interpreted as consent. It identifies the “freeze response”, a reaction to fear or threat that can lead to temporary paralysis and a loss of the ability to speak, and the “fawn response”, which is a survival strategy. 

PATCHWORK OF NATIONAL LAWS

EU countries apply different legal definitions of rape, even among those that have ratified the Istanbul Convention, an international treaty designed to protect women that criminalises rape based on the absence of consent.

France updated its rape laws last year to include “freely given and informed” consent following the Gisele Pelicot mass rape trial. Previously, French criminal law did not include the concept of consent and defined rape as sexual acts using “violence, coercion, threat or surprise”.

German law uses the absence of “no” while Austria relies on a force-based definition. Bulgaria, the Czech Republic, Hungary, Lithuania, and Slovakia have not ratified the convention while in October, Latvia’s parliament voted to withdraw from it.

“Most rapes are committed by someone the victim knows, at home, without physical violence, and most victims are paralysed by fear rather than fight back. For years the law has been built around the wrong picture of rape entirely,” Swedish lawmaker Abir Al-Sahlani with the Renew group said in a statement.

“This report also names rape culture for what it is, not a collection of bad individuals but a system of attitudes and norms that normalises sexual violence and protects perpetrators.”

Some 447 lawmakers voted in favour of the report, 43 abstained, and 160 parliamentarians voted against. Opposition came largely from conservative and far-right groups.

Reporting by Julia PayneEditing by Ros Russell