The former front man of The Smiths has added his name to a bizarrely growing list of celebrities who have said the Falkland Islands should belong to Argentina.

"You know of course the Malvinas Islands, everybody knows they belong to Argentina," Morrissey told an Argentinian crowd.

The singer's comments were captured in a video posted on YouTube on Friday, which claim to show him speaking during a performance in the city of Cordoba on Thursday evening.

To applause from the crowd he added: "So please do not blame the British people, we know the islands belong to you."

His comments echo those of Roger Waters, the Pink Floyd lyricist, and Hollywood actor Sean Penn.

Waters, who is also on a tour of South America, said he was "ashamed" of Britain's colonial past. When asked who he thought the islands should belong to Waters replied: "Las Malvinas are Argentine."

And Penn accused Britain of "colonialism" for wanting to maintain control of the territory.

Morrissey's declaration that the British people did not want its government to keep control of the territory appears to be unfounded.

A recent survey showed that of those polled, 61%, agreed that London should keep "all options open", including taking military action, when responding to any possible threat of a Falklands invasion.

The Smiths singer's intervention comes the day after the band's former guitarist said they would re-form if David Cameron quit Downing Street.

No. 10 has accused Argentina of pursuing a "policy of confrontation" over the islands, after reports suggested the South American state's government was calling on companies to stop importing goods from the UK.

David Cameron's official spokesman said that the Argentine move was "counter-productive" and amounted to a misreading of British resolve over the disputed islands. The Foreign Office is raising the issue with the Argentine embassy.

Argentine state news agency Telam reported that industry minister Debora Giorgi has called on the country's top companies to replace imports from the UK with goods produced elsewhere.

Her initiative marks the latest escalation of the confrontation over the islands as the 30th anniversary of the Falklands War approaches.

Buenos Aires has complained to the United Nations of British "militarisation" of the south Atlantic, following the deployment of a new Royal Navy warship to the Falklands, as well as the Duke of Cambridge's tour of duty as an air-sea rescue pilot on the islands.