Argentine president lays into Britain over Falklands

Twenty-nine years after the end of the Falklands war a new row is brewing over the future of the islands after Argentine president Cristina Kirchner described Britain as "a crude colonial power in decline" and said David Cameron was "arrogant" for refusing to address the issue of sovereignty.
 
The thorny question of the Falklands - or the Malvinas as they are known in Argentina - reared its head this week after a British man became the first Falkland islander to take Argentinian citizenship. James Peck, whose father was killed fighting for the British during the 1982 war, was personally presented with his identity card by Kirchner, who spoke of Argentina's "undeniable sovereignty over the Malvinas".
 
Her words did not go unnoticed in Westminster and Cameron told the House of Commons this week: "As long as the Falkland Islands want to be sovereign British territory, they should remain sovereign British territory – full stop, end of story."
 
However, his announcement only seemed to encourage Kirchner, who said Cameron's comment was an "expression of mediocrity and almost of stupidity". She added that Britain "in the 21st century continues to be a crude colonial power in decline".
 
The verbal spat raises the prospect of a new tussle over the future of the islands, which lie off the south-east coast of Argentina and have a population of just over 3,000. And if push comes to shove, this time round Argentina could have the upper hand in any conflict.
 
Margaret Thatcher's 1982 campaign to retake the islands after an Argentine invasion was successful and did her a power of good in the polls. David Cameron is in a similar position domestically to Thatcher, but he cannot count on a victorious foreign war to boost his ratings.
 
For one thing Britain can no longer be sure of unquestioning American backing. Last week the US called for Britain and Argentina to begin negotiations over the future sovereignty of the islands, but last year the British were angered by several US references to the islands as the Malvinas.
 
Secondly, defence cuts mean that no one seriously believes Britain could retake the islands in the same way they did in 1982 - after all, the Navy no longer has an aircraft carrier.
 
To make matters worse, the stakes have been raised by the apparent discovery of oil off the coast, although the most recent drilling attempts have failed. ·