After days of speculation the first case of COVID-19, the disease caused by coronavirus, has been confirmed on the occupied Malvinas Islands (which the British call Falkland Islands).
According to Sky News’ foreign affairs editor, the first confirmed case is a “British service person” based at Mount Pleasant, the sprawling tri-service military complex situated in Isla Soledad (which the British call East Falkland).
BREAKING: First case of #COVID19 confirmed in the Falkland Islands. The patient was admitted from the Mount Pleasant Complex - the British military base, a Falkland Islands government statement said. Base also home to contractors, civil servants and family of military personnel
— Deborah Haynes (@haynesdeborah) April 3, 2020
An outbreak of coronavirus amongst troops, contractors and their families on Mount Pleasant runs the very real risk of compromising the UK’s offensive military posture on the archipelago.
Situated in the South Atlantic Ocean (just over 480 km from the Argentine coast), the Malvinas Islands is claimed by Argentina on the grounds that the UK has illegally occupied the archipelago since 1833.
Beyond the 1,300-strong garrison in Mount Pleasant, the population of occupied Malvinas Islands – which numbers around 3,400 – is believed to be particularly vulnerable to COVID-19, primarily due to the prevalence of old people in poor health.