Royal Navy opens fire off Falkland Islands as South America summit debates sovereignty

A ROYAL NAVY ship today opened fire in the Falklands - at the same time a group of South American governments held an extraordinary meeting to discuss the islands' sovereignty and 'colonialism'.

The Royal Navy fired shells off the Falkland IslandsPA/GETTY

HMS Iron Duke fired 136 shells as part of a training exercise

The frigate, HMS Iron Duke, fired 136 shells as part of a training exercise with the Army in San Carlos Water and Falkland Sound - where British servicemen staged landings 32 years ago, in order to retake the islands following Argentina's invasion.

Troops from the South Atlantic islands' Roulement Infantry Company and 148 (Meiktila) Battery Royal Artillery teamed up with the warship for the joint exercise.

The activities were described as an opportunity for the Portsmouth-based warship "to show off her gunnery skills".

HMS Iron Duke is currently nearing the end of its six-month Atlantic deployment.

Major Mick O'Connor, the naval gunfire liaison officer, said: "In my many years of conducting naval gunfire support this was undoubtedly the most accurate display I have seen.

"If I were to be ashore calling in the gunnery I would have no hesitation if I knew it were HMS Iron Duke providing the cover."

HMS Iron Duke fires shells off the Falkland IslandsPA

The warship teamed up with the army for the training exercise

The purpose of these initiatives is to try and achieve the beginning of dialogue between the governments of Argentina and the UK as mandated by the United Nations and the international community, but to which the British have deaf ears.

Parlasur president Ruben Martinez Huelmo

Meanwhile, representatives from the parliaments of Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay and Venezuela met to debate Argentina's claim to the Falklands.

The meeting of the 'Parlasur' group of South American countries, held in Uruguay capital Montevideo, is the first extraordinary session to be specifically dedicated to the issue.

The foreign ministers of both Argentina and Uruguay attended the summit, as well as Argentina's secretary for matters relating to the Falklands, Daniel Filmus.

A group called the Malvinas Forum - using Argentina's name for the archipelago - consisting of high-profile figures from Uruguay who support Argentina's claim to sovereignty, also attended the meeting.

A Parlasur session at the Mercosur building in Montevideo, on April 7, 2014GETTY

The Parlasur group is made up of South America's leading nations

Today's summit was arranged last June, at the same time as a sub-committee of the Parlasur group was created to study the Falklands issue more closely.

It followed a United Nations resolution earlier this year, which called on the UK and Argentina to negotiate a solution to the dispute.

Ruben Martinez Huelmo, president of the Parlasur, told local reporters today: "It's a session that had been agreed earlier this year, and in which the chair of Parlasur decided to include a reflection on the issue in its agenda.

He added: "The purpose of these initiatives is to try and achieve the beginning of dialogue between the governments of Argentina and the UK as mandated by the United Nations and the international community, but to which the British have deaf ears.”

In March 2013, the Falkland Islands held a referendum on its sovereignty, with 99.8 per cent of residents voting to remain under British rule.

Yesterday, a large crowd gathered in the islands' capital Port Stanley to mark Remembrance Sunday.

Among British servicemen remembered were those who lost their lives in the 1982 Falklands conflict.

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