Based in Israel, Henry reports on the war in the Middle East, terrorism, Israeli politics and life in the Palestinian territories 5:00am BST Benjamin Netanyahu has ordered Israel to support Argentina over the Falklands, The Telegraph can reveal.

The Israeli prime minister told diplomats to change his country’s official position and join Buenos Aires in calling for direct talks over the future of the islands.

Mr Netanyahu, who has a close bond with Javier Milei, the Argentine president, altered his position following last month’s decision by Ed Miliband, the Foreign Secretary, to impose economic sanctions on West Bank settlements.

The change in stance falls short of formally backing Argentina’s claim over the Falklands, but will raise fears that Israel could throw its weight behind Buenos Aires if Britain imposes further sanctions on the settlements.

The sanctions package, which Mr Miliband announced while accusing Israel of “ethnic cleansing”, prompted a diplomatic spat that saw Britain’s consulate in Jerusalem downgraded and most of the staff expelled. The row now appears to have spilt into the Falklands debate.

It comes at a precarious moment for Britain’s sovereignty over the islands, with Argentina mounting a renewed diplomatic push to promote its claim, following comments by Donald Trump in September suggesting he would not back the UK in a future conflict over the issue.

At a sparsely attended session of the United Nations last week, Danny Danon, Israel’s ambassador to the UN, made a short speech calling for direct negotiations between Britain and Argentina over the future of the islands.

“Israel recognises the importance that the Argentine public attaches to this issue as well as its ongoing efforts through diplomatic channels and in accordance with the principles of international law,” he said.

The ambassador added that “progress on this matter must be achieved while taking into consideration the full spectrum of relevant historical, legal and human aspects”. The language was nuanced and did entail formal support for Argentina’s claim.

The British Task Force at San Carlos during the Falklands War in 1982 However, government sources said Israel’s recognition of the “historical connection” between Argentina and the islands marked a significant shift in position.

It will raise fears that Israel could go further, particularly if Mr Netanyahu survives next week’s general election. If he returns with another Right-wing government and the same policies in the West Bank, it could prompt more British sanctions, damaging the relationship further.

“The wording of the statement itself got approved at the highest ranks of the Israeli government,” one source said. “This is the first time Israel has got involved in this conflict.”

The official said the shift should be seen in the context of Israel’s warm relationship with Argentina.

Mr Milei has voiced strong support for Israel throughout the war following the Oct 7 massacre.

He was invited to this year’s independence day celebrations in Israel, in which he lit a ceremonial torch and sang a song.

Javier Milei, seen praying at the Western Wall in Jerusalem in 2024, has a close bond with Benjamin Netanyahu However, the Israeli official said the UN intervention had also been taken in the context of “a changing policy from the British government towards Israel”, citing in particular “all the critical statements that the British Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary said in the last few weeks, especially regarding sanctions”.

Israel’s demand that the UK and Argentina conduct direct negotiations over the Falklands is considered provocative by Britain, given its longstanding position that talks should only take place with the consent of the islanders.

The inhabitants have consistently expressed a desire to remain under British sovereignty, a point that was made on the floor of the UN in response to Mr Danon’s speech.

In recent months, Israel has emerged as an unlikely battleground for the debate over the islands’ future.

British officials suspect that Mr Milei hopes to utilise Israel’s strong relationship with Washington to argue its case.

This has included a lengthy opinion piece in the Jerusalem Post by Pablo Quirno, Argentina’s foreign minister, in July, in which he argued that “Las Malvinas” were Argentine “by history, by right, by conviction”. Argentine players at the World Cup held up a provocative banner with the phrase, ‘Las Malvinas son Argentinas’ It prompted an article of rebuttal in the same newspaper by Simon Walters, the British ambassador to Israel, who accused Mr Quirno of spreading “historical falsehoods”.

Some who favour Argentina’s claim have sought to leverage Britain’s decision not to take part in the US-Israeli assault on Iran to argue Buenos Aires’s case to Mr Trump.

Marc Zell, chairman of Republicans Overseas Israel, has consistently called on the US president to rethink the US position, given the UK’s “dastardly betrayal”. In theory, the moment is ripe for Israel to lean towards supporting Argentina.

As traditional European allies have become increasingly critical of Israel over what they describe as the excesses of the Gaza war and rampant settler violence in the West Bank, Israel has stepped up efforts to forge closer ties with Right-leaning countries in South and Central America.

At the same time, the UK’s recognition of Palestinian statehood last year and the September sanctions have brought the British-Israeli relationship to its lowest point in decades.

However, Israeli government sources stressed that, at a technical level, the two governments continued to work productively, including on security.

“Israel and Britain co-operate very strongly on the security side,” one said. “We don’t know what the future will bring, but we hope both governments will continue the relationship as it was before.”Despite the rancorous tenor of the current relationship at a political level, there are numerous technical reasons why Israel may choose not to provoke the UK by formally backing Argentina’s claim.

The intelligence relationship is two-way, and gives Israel an additional avenue into the Five Eyes intelligence alliance via another ally with a permanent seat on the UN Security Council.

Israeli companies are also involved with UK firms in the Sea Lion oilfield project near the Falklands. The Foreign Office was approached for comment.

Speaking at the UN last week, Kate Foster, the British representative, said: “The United Kingdom has no doubt over its sovereignty over the Falklands Islands, South Georgia and the Sandwich Islands.”

She added: “There can be no dialogue on sovereignty without the consent of the islanders.”