Argentine chief slams Cameron on Falklands

BUENOS AIRES, June 17 (UPI) -- Argentine President Cristina Kirchner called Britain a fading empire after Prime Minister David Cameron reasserted control of the Falkland Islands.

After a Falkland Islander whose father helped fight Argentina in the 1982 war embraced Argentine citizenship, Cameron said in Parliament Wednesday: "I would say this: As long as the Falkland Islands want to be sovereign British territory, they should remain sovereign British territory -- full stop, end of story."

Kirchner, who wants negotiations on the disputed islands, responded Thursday that Britain "continues to be a crude colonial power in decline." Cameron was "arrogant" and his remarks showed "mediocrity and stupidity," the British newspaper The Daily Telegraph quoted Kirchner as saying.

James Peck, who has lived in Buenos Aires with his Argentine wife since 2006, was personally given an Argentine birth certificate by Kirchner and said the islands should join Argentina.

Sharon Halford, a member of the Falklands Legislative Assembly, said the late Terry Peck, who used a concealed camera to photograph Argentine anti-aircraft and troop positions, "believed the Falkland Islands are British, no question whatsoever."

She expressed "absolute disgust" at Peck's decision.