Falkland Islands British military garrison is stationed on the islands, and the Falkland Islands government funds an additional company-sized light infantry Falkland Islands Defence Force. The Falklands claim an exclusive economic zone (EEZ) extending from its coastal baselines, based on the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea; this zone overlaps with the EEZ of Argentina. The United Kingdom and Argentina both claim the Falkland Islands. The UK bases its position on its continuous administration of the islands since 1833 and the islanders' "right to self-determination as set out in the UN Charter". Argentina's position is that it acquired the
Falkland Islands sovereignty dispute was held in London, where the British delegation "formally rejected" the Argentine Ambassador's suggestion that the UK's occupation of the Islands was illegal. On 2 December 1980, Nicholas Ridley, Minister of State at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, stated in the House of Commons: "We have no doubt about our sovereignty over the Falkland Islands... we have a perfectly valid title". The British government regards the right of the islanders to self-determination as "paramount" and rejects the idea of negotiations over sovereignty without the islanders' consent. Supporters of the British position argue: The Constitution of the Falkland Islands, which came