Raging Argentina to file criminal charges against oil firm drilling off Falkland Islands

British company Rockhopper Exploration owns the remaining 35 per cent.

The criminal complaint has specifically targeted Navitas Petroleum Development & Production Ltd, Navitas Petroleum Atlantic United, Navitas Petroleum LP, JHI Associates Inc and Eco Atlantic Oil & Gas Ltd, alongside the Israeli firm's executives.

Argentina has accused the oil firm of "holding licenses granted by the illegitimate Government of the United Kingdom" to exploit natural resources sitting below the South Atlantic in the North Falkland Basin.

The criminal case has targeted directors, managers and any representatives from the company who have been involved in the Sea Lion project.

Navitas has insisted it has always acted “in accordance with the laws of the Falkland Islands, with the approval of the Falkland Islands Government and with the full support of the Government of the United Kingdom”.

A spokesman for the firm said: “We wish to emphasise that the law has always been our guiding principle. We have always acted, and will continue to act, in accordance with the law.

"The company is not a party to the dispute between Argentina and the United Kingdom.”.

Buenos Aires has previously claimed oil drilling around the British territory is "illegal" and sanctioned Navitas directly in December 2025.

Sea Lion lies around 136 miles north of the Falklands in the South Atlantic.

The oil field is believed to contain the equivalent of around 900 million barrels of black gold and sits approximately 1.6 miles beneath the seabed, itself at a depth of nearly 1,500 feet.

The Falkland Islands Government will receive a nine per cent royalty on revenues from the field, alongside a 26 per cent corporation tax on profits.

In the early hours of Friday morning, Mr Milei warned that drilling was due to start within months and declared that Argentina "will not allow it" during a national address.

He said: "That means that if we do not act swiftly in a few months, they will have the material capacity to access the oil that lies underneath our sea. Something that has never happened before.

"That means that our national claim is facing a clear and present danger, and requires a proportional response.

"We will not allow it," he bristled.

The Argentine leader also threatened to fast-track sanctions against oil firms operating "under the British occupation" of the Falkland Islands.

British explorers first set foot on the islands before Argentina existed as an independent state.

Though the spat with Navitas comes amid a period of unusually warm ties between Israel and Argentina.

On Monday evening, Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir accused Britain of "occupying" the Falklands and called for Benjamin Netanyahu to back Argentina's claim in response to Labour's sanctions against Israel over settlements in the West Bank.

"The British are not content with merely occupying the territory; they also carry out oil drilling there and steal the money from the Argentine people," he blasted.

Mr Ben-Gvir did not acknowledge the Israeli firm's involvement in the Sea Lion project.

During his national address, Mr Milei said Britain was a nation "in decline" as he vowed to "reclaim" the South Atlantic territory.

By Wednesday morning, £1 was worth just shy of 2,050 Argentina pesos.

He said: “In the world, the winds are blowing favourably for our claim right now. The Falklands are our future - we need to recover these islands which are nationally relevant. There is no other path forward.”