Cristina Kirchner, Argentinian President, Accused Of Using Falkland Islands To Cover Domestic Problems

'She Just Wants To Ruffle A Few Feathers'

Argentinian President, Cristina Kirchner, has been accused of deliberately stoking international tensions over the Falkland Islands in an attempt to mask her government's domestic failings.

Britain has continuously stressed that the islands will remain British.

Kirchner is using the Falkland Islands to mask negative domestic issues

The Argentinian economy has slowed dramatically this year and inflation has soared to 24%, the highest of all the South American nations.

Thousands of people took to the streets last month to protest against the financial malaise as well as perceived government corruption and spiralling violent crime.

"She just wants to ruffle a few feathers," the source said.

Despite a landslide election victory last year Kirchner's approval ratings have slumped to just 24 per cent.

Polls indicate a slight surge in popularity whenever she invokes the nationalist sentiments that Argentinians feel over the Falkland Islands meaning she is unlikely to stop using such tactics.

Mario Menéndez, an Argentine Falklands War general, told The Daily Telegraph: "The islands are being used for political ends."

The situation is reminiscent of the lead-up to the Falklands War in 1982. The then-ruling military junta used the issue of Falkland Island sovereignty to mask poor the country's poor economic performance eventually invading and sparking a conflict that claimed the lives of 908 people.

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