Torygraph:
Navy intercepts Argentinian warship near British waters
The Royal Navy has intercepted an Argentinian warship near British waters in an apparent escalation of the row over the Falkland Islands.
Destroyer HMS York spotted the vessel around ten miles inside the disputed “oil zone” around the South Atlantic islands. The British crew had to radio the Argentinian ship, a smaller corvette named ARA Drummond, to demand that it change its course.
Sources told The Sun that the ship made an “innocent navigational blunder” and were embarrassed about the mistake.
It is believed that the Drummond was spotted sailing alongside a French fleet before it broke away and headed for the disputed zone.
Under international law, the 15 miles of sea surrounding the Falklands are officially British waters.
The ship was spotted around 65 miles from the islands, in an area of sea called the “conservation zone”. It is in this zone that the oil exploration is taking place. It is not illegal for Argentinian ships to enter it but the incident has heightened tensions.
A spokesman for the MoD played down the incident, insisting that the radio communication had been “friendly”. He said: “We can confirm that on 28 January this year during rough weather and at night, HMS YORK and an Argentine ship were operating in the same locality in international waters around 50 miles from Falkland Island Territorial Waters. After a friendly dialogue by radio they each continued with their own exercises.”
On Wednesday the MoD said that HMS York would remain the area around the islands. A British submarine has also been dispatched to the Falklands to patrol the area.
Argentina has since protested to the UN about the British oil exploration. Its foreign minister is due to meet Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.