Argentina asks tribunal to halt UK oil work near Falklands

Argentina's government said on 13 October 2026 it had filed a request for provisional measures with the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea, seeking to halt British-authorised hydrocarbon activity near the Falkland Islands. The request aims to prevent the United Kingdom from exploiting hydrocarbon resources on the continental shelf of the Northern Falklands Basin.straitstimes.com+1

The filing matters because it moves a long-running sovereignty dispute into a formal international legal forum, at a moment when oil development north of the islands is advancing. The Argentine government said the request seeks to preserve its sovereign rights over its continental shelf and prevent activities it called unilaterally and illegally authorised by the United Kingdom.jpost.com

What the filing seeks

The Sea Lion offshore project sits in the north Falklands basin in the south Atlantic and has the potential to triple the Falklands' GDP, according to the Falkland Islands government. Navitas Petroleum and Rockhopper Exploration own the project. Israeli oil company Navitas leads the development, and the company confirmed UK Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband's approval of the field.

Britain has appealed to Interpol's headquarters in Lyon to reject Argentine red notice requests for the arrest of individuals involved in the project, including British nationals, arguing they should be seen as politically motivated. Interpol screens red notices, which ask member countries to locate and provisionally arrest a person pending extradition. Nearly 20,000 were issued last year.

In a response to the UK's correspondence, Interpol said it would respect article 3 of its constitution, which forbids it from undertaking any intervention or activities of a political character. Individual member countries then decide whether to act on circulated notices. Andrea Clausen, chief executive of the Falklands government, said the use of Interpol by Argentina was a threat.

Where the numbers came from

In September, Argentina began sanctions proceedings against more than 60 companies and people linked to the offshore drilling project, and announced it would file a criminal complaint against Navitas for operating in the Falklands. British Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Overseas Territories Uma Kumaran called the sanctions unacceptable, saying the Falkland Islands are British and have the right to develop their natural resources.

On 28 September, President Javier Milei gave the UK a two-week deadline to stop the project or face legal action, and the deadline passed on Monday. Argentina is expected to escalate by requesting arbitration under annex VII of the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea, seeking a binding ruling that the UK must stop drilling.

UK government sources are confident the tribunal will not wade into a sovereignty dispute. At a public meeting, assembly member Dean Dent said the UK government had assembled an in-depth team of legal advisers and King's Counsel, and noted four recent cases where sovereignty claims were disregarded by the tribunal as sovereignty, not maritime, issues.

What happens next

Britain has also defended the rights of the Falkland Islanders to self-determination. Argentina continues to claim sovereignty over the 700 islands and has dismissed a 2013 referendum in which 99.8% of the islands' 3,600 residents voted to remain British, with three votes against. The archipelago lies 300 miles east of Argentina's southern Patagonian coast.

A draft national sovereignty bill before Argentina's congress would expand sanctions to affiliates of Navitas and Rockhopper, financial intermediaries, shareholders and suppliers, and could target those involved in the Falklands fishing industry. The bill, which has yet to be approved by Congress, aims to replace 2011 legislation with a tougher framework.

Navitas Petroleum and Rockhopper Exploration have previously indicated they do not expect Argentina's actions to derail development of the Sea Lion project. The filing of provisional measures at the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea now sits alongside the expected arbitration request under the UN Convention on the Law of the Sea.