The government of the Falkland
Islands says it is unhappy about a decision by an international
commission to expand Argentina's waters to include those around the
UK-sovereign lands.
The decision, which is not yet final, follows a
move by Argentina in 2009 to expand its maritime territory to include
that of the islands, known as the Malvinas in Argentina.
The move will increase its waters in the South Atlantic Ocean by 35%.
The area is potentially rich in oil.
The Falkland Islands' government is seeking clarification from the UK over the decision.
Mike
Summers, chairman of the Legislative Assembly of the Falkland Islands,
which governs the islands' internal affairs, said: "Our understanding
has always been that the UN would not make any determination on
applications for continental shelf extension in areas where there are
competing claims."
The decision comes from the UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf.
Although
not yet binding, the move raises the stakes in the claims by the UK and
Argentina to the Falkland Island region, whose waters are being closely
explored for oil and gas deposits.
The
Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf is a group of experts
established under the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the
Sea, but it is not a United Nations' Commission.
Anniversary
The
Commission notes that the islands are the subject of a dispute between
the UK and Argentina, who went to war over the group in 1982.
Tuesday
marks the anniversary of the ordering of the naval task force to the
Falkland Islands by the then prime minister, Margaret Thatcher.
The
UK has held the Falklands since 1833, and the vast majority of its
3,000 citizens want the islands to remain a British overseas territory.
Many
islanders remain concerned about Argentina's claim as well as the
potential for problems from rapid change brought by the oil exploration
industry.
Drilling for oil in the territorial waters around the Falklands began in 2010 despite opposition from Buenos Aires.
Shares in one of the companies drilling in the region, Rockhopper International, were down 9% on Tuesday.
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