The Falklands government has rebuked Donald Trump and told him the islands are British after the Pentagon drew up proposals to support Argentine claims over sovereignty.
The US is reviewing its official position on the islands as a means to punish the UK for failing to support its war with Iran.
Islanders and Sir Keir Starmer condemned the move, while war veterans accused the US president of “bullying”.
In a statement, the Falkland Islands government said that 99.8 per cent of voters on the island had cast their ballot in favour of remaining a British Overseas Territory.
It added: “The Falkland Islands has complete confidence in the commitment made by the UK Government to uphold and defend our right of self-determination.”
Sir Keir also hit back at the Trump administration shortly after leaked emails suggested that the US position was under review.
The Prime Minister’s spokesman said he could “not be clearer” that the islands were a sovereign British Overseas Territory and that their right to self-determination was paramount.
The spokesman said: “Sovereignty rests with the UK, and the islands’ right to self-determination is paramount.”
British veterans of the Falklands War branded Mr Trump a “bully”.
“The islanders do not deserve to be anybody’s political football,” said Simon Weston, who was severely burned when his troop transport RFA Sir Galahad was attacked during the war.
“Trump ... is a bully that is using the weight of America behind him to reach his own personal goals and set his stamp in history,” added Peter Robinson, who served in 40 Commando during the effort to free the Falklands and was the marine pictured in a famous photo from the time carrying the Union Flag from his backpack.
The Pentagon review on the Falklands was included on a list of potential punishments being drawn up to counter a perceived lack of assistance from Nato allies in the Iran war.
It follows a series of disputes between Sir Keir and Mr Trump and comes ahead of the King’s state visit to Washington next week.
The leaked Pentagon memo states that one of the options under consideration for punishing allies would be to reassess diplomatic support for long-standing European “imperial possessions”, such as the Falklands.
Another policy option for punishing reluctant allies would be to suspend “difficult” ones – mainly Spain – from obtaining important jobs or roles within Nato.
Madrid has been Europe’s most vocal opponent to Mr Trump’s war in Iran, and has repeatedly denied American forces the use of its bases or overflight rights – known as ABO.
The Pentagon email said ABO was “just the absolute baseline for Nato” support for Washington.
In an interview with The Telegraph last month, Mr Trump suggested he was strongly considering withdrawing the US from Nato. He said the prospect was “beyond reconsideration”.
The Pentagon email, circulated among high-level officials, does not include the possibility of quitting the alliance or withdrawing troops from Europe.
American and British sources remain sceptical of the proposal and point out that Washington’s official position of neutrality remains the same. They say that the memo was not a formal proposal from the administration.
“It’s nothing more than rumours designed to scare,” a source close to the Trump administration said.
Nile Gardener, the director of the Margaret Thatcher Centre for Freedom at the Heritage Foundation, added: “This is not official US policy. I expect the White House to officially adopt US policy, and they will view it as deeply unhelpful to the special relationship.”
Starmer’s behaviour ‘highly problematic’
However, British diplomatic sources fear that an intervention from Mr Trump himself could spark a public debate over sovereignty and cast doubt on Britain’s ownership.
“It is absolutely possible, and it is a good idea,” one prominent Republican source said of the suggestion. “The behaviour of Starmer has been highly problematic.”
Yvette Cooper, the Foreign Secretary, wrote on social media: “The Falkland Islands are British – sovereignty rests with the UK, self-determination rests with the islanders.”
The UK has exercised de facto sovereignty over the Falkland Islands since 1833.
Javier Milei, Argentina’s president, told The Telegraph in an interview last year that he would not give up his country’s claim over the territory, using the Argentinian name “Las Malvinas”.
He described it as “non-negotiable”, despite claiming he wanted to rekindle relations with London.
Earlier this week Mr Milei told Neura Media, an Argentine YouTube channel, that his government was doing “everything humanely possible” to bring the islands “back into Argentine hands”.
Mr Milei has warm relations with Mr Trump and backs the White House’s policy of extending power and influence across the Western Hemisphere.
The Telegraph revealed in December that Argentina was in talks with Britain to lift a weapons ban that could allow the South American country to purchase state-of-the-art military technology, potentially threatening the Falklands.
On Friday, The Telegraph also revealed that the US put pressure on the UK not to interfere in a deal to transfer F-16 fighter jets from Denmark to Argentina to build up its armed forces.
During the Falklands War, America initially remained neutral but it later came out in support of Britain, offering use of military bases and intelligence to forces attempting to retake the island from the Argentines.
Kemi Badenoch, the Conservative leader, said the UK needed to “back the Falklands” and protect the British Overseas Territory.
“This is absolute nonsense, the Falkland Islands are British,” she told Sky News. “They have been for a very long time. The sovereignty is British sovereignty.
“This is one of the things that worries me about the changing world: I’m not like Keir Starmer, giving away the Chagos Islands and surrendering British territory. We need to make sure that we back the Falkland Islands. I don’t know what Donald Trump is talking about.”
On Friday evening, Pablo Quirno, Argentina’s foreign minister, called for talks with the UK over the future of the islands.
He posted on X: “The Argentine Republic once again expresses its willingness to resume bilateral negotiations with the United Kingdom that will allow for finding a peaceful and definitive solution to the sovereignty dispute and bring an end to the special and particular colonial situation in which they are immersed.”
