Sean Penn: Falklands belong to Argentina
Actor Sean Penn speaks onstage at the Cinema For Peace event benefiting the J/P Haitian Relief Organization on Jan 14 in Los Angeles.
Actor and activist Sean Penn has taken sides against Britain in the revived Falkland Islands dispute, according to The Associated Press.
The news agency said Penn had met today with Argentine president Christina Fernández de Kirchner and then called on the UK to participate in UN-sponsored talks, referring to the islands as “the Malvinas Islands of Argentina.”
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Penn was quoted as saying "the world today is not going to tolerate any ludicrous and archaic commitment to colonialist ideology."
Britain established control over the islands in the 19th century and fought a war in 1982 to repel an invasion by Argentina, then ruled by a military junta.
The coming 30th anniversary of the conflict has caused tensions to rise between London and Buenos Aires, which accused the UK of “militarizing” the question of sovereignty over the Islands by beefing up military defenses of the islands.
According to the AP, London has refused to negotiate so long as the islands’ inhabitants prefer to remain part of Britain.
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The Daily Telegraph reported Saturday that the Falklands could see a windfall of $176 billion in tax revenues in oil and gas exploration, according to a report submitted to the British government.