Residents of the Falkland Islands have started voting in a
sovereignty referendum that seeks to counter Argentina's
increasingly assertive claim over the British-ruled
territory.
Argentina has stepped up its row with Britain over the
Falklands, its foreign minister thanking God for the decline
of the British Empire and vowing to prosecute oil firms
exploring off the remote South Atlantic islands.
Britain has rejected calls from Argentine President Cristina
Fernandez for talks over the disputed Falkland Islands after
she wrote an open letter to Prime Minister David Cameron.
Britain has summoned Argentina's ambassador to London after
masked men ransacked the offices of a shipping company in
Buenos Aires, a move the Foreign Office alleged was aimed at
deterring ships from visiting the disputed Falkland Islands.
British Prime Minister David Cameron has warned Argentina
that London stands "ready and willing" to defend the Falkland
Islands, 30 years after Britain recaptured the South Atlantic
archipelago whose sovereignty remains a hotly contested
issue.
Provincial authorities in Argentina have prohibited two
British-linked cruise ships from docking in Tierra del Fuego,
upping the ante in Argentina's spat with Britain over the
Falkland Islands.
