Argentina takes legal aim at Navitas Petroleum over Falklands oil project

Argentina’s government said on Monday it would file criminal charges against Israeli energy company Navitas Petroleum, several of its subsidiaries and partners, and their executives over oil operations in the Falkland Islands, escalating Buenos Aires’ long-running sovereignty dispute with Britain.

The move follows remarks by Argentine President Javier Milei on Friday, when he vowed to sanction oil companies drilling in the British overseas territory as he stepped up Argentina’s sovereignty claims over the South Atlantic islands.

According to a statement from the Argentine presidency, Foreign Minister Pablo Quirno will file the criminal complaint against Navitas subsidiaries and partner companies operating in the territory, as well as their corporate directors, according to the Guardian.

The government alleges that the companies violated Argentine law by holding hydrocarbon exploration and exploitation licenses issued by the UK for operations in the North Falkland Basin. The complaint names Navitas Petroleum Development & Production Ltd., Navitas Petroleum Atlantic United, Navitas Petroleum LP, JHI Associates Inc. and Eco (Atlantic) Oil & Gas Ltd., according to the Argentine government.

Milei last week singled out the Sea Lion offshore oil project as he announced measures targeting companies involved in oil and gas activities around the Falkland Islands. The proposed penalties could extend to shareholders, directors and suppliers.

The Sea Lion field is operated by Tel Aviv-listed Navitas Petroleum, which holds a 65% stake. Gideon Tadmor, a prominent figure in Israel’s energy sector and the company’s chairman, owns about 9% of its shares, according to LSEG data.

The dispute has intensified following comments by U.S. President Donald Trump that Milei interpreted as a possible shift in Washington’s position on the Falklands. In a televised address last week, Milei said that “winds of change” favourable to Argentina’s claim to the islands were blowing around the world.

Trump had earlier been asked whether he was reviewing the U.S. position on the Falklands. “I always review every position – that’s just one of many,” he said.

Milei described Trump’s response as a “threat” that was “not innocuous.”

“The US is considering this change of position because it knows that Argentina is a reliable partner, aligned with western values, in a strategically important position that can be a valuable ally in the decades to come,” Milei said.

He also said companies developing oil “behind the back of the Argentine government” would be barred from doing business in Argentina.

The United States officially maintains a neutral position on the question of sovereignty over the Falkland Islands, which Britain first claimed in the late 17th century and has held almost continuously since 1833. In practice, Washington recognises British administration of the territory.

The islands were invaded by Argentina in 1982, triggering a military conflict that ended with Britain regaining control. The dispute has remained a longstanding source of tension between Buenos Aires and London.

British ministers immediately condemned Milei’s latest comments, saying the Falklands would remain British for as long as the people who live there wanted them to.

Speculation that Washington could alter its position on the islands has been circulating for months. In April, a leaked Pentagon email reportedly suggested reviewing Britain’s claim in response to what it described as the UK’s lack of support for Trump’s decision to go to war with Iran. Trump has also criticised what he considers insufficient defence spending by NATO countries.

Any shift in the U.S. position would represent a significant psychological blow to Britain’s sovereignty over the Falklands.

When Argentina invaded the islands in 1982, the decision by Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher’s government to send a naval task force that ultimately recaptured them was reinforced by strong diplomatic support from U.S. President Ronald Reagan. Washington backed Britain despite also being an ally of Argentina’s ruling military junta at the time.

By Tamilla Hasanova