Geography and Anthropology Associate Professor James J.A. Blair discusses Argentine President Javier Milei’s renewed claim to the Falkland Islands, drawing on fieldwork he conducted there during the 2013 sovereignty referendum and previous offshore oil development for his book, Salvaging Empire. Blair describes Milei’s rhetoric as a “political escalation” driven in part by the advancing Sea Lion offshore oil project, but says the underlying balance of control remains largely unchanged absent a formal shift in U.S. policy, negotiations with Britain or sanctions that materially disrupt the project’s supply chain. 

This story was originally broadcast by BBC News on September 4, 2026.