Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper has issued a warning over the Falkland Islands ahead of the tense World Cup semi-final tonight. Yvette Cooper said “the UK position remains the same” and the issue of sovereignty over the British Overseas Territory is not up for debate. Ms Cooper said: “The UK position remains the same. The Falklands are British and they have right to self-determination. That remains the position.

“I know there’s a lot of focus suddenly on all of these things again because of the football match, but actually we should concentrate on the football match. That’s what’s important this week and not get distracted about things that simply have not changed and are not going to change as well. So let’s focus on the football.”

Downing Street also made sure its “position is clear,” and a spokesperson for outgoing Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said: “The UK’s position is clear. The islanders have repeatedly expressed their wish to remain a British overseas territory, and their right to self-determination is paramount. In 2013, the people of the Falkland Islands voted overwhelmingly in favour of remaining a UK overseas territory.”

No 10 comments came after the intervention from foreign minister Pablo Quirno, who claimed the island’s population had been “artificially implanted by the occupying power”. Referring to the 2013 referendum on the archipelago, in which Falkland Islands residents were asked whether they wanted to remain a British Overseas Territory, he also claimed that no poll organised “unilaterally” by the UK can have “legal effect”, calling instead for negotiations on the Falklands’ future.

Falklands residents overwhelmingly voted in favour of remaining a British territory in 2013, and have often voiced their desire for the status quo not to be changed since.

But on Monday, Sir Keir Starmer’s official spokesman said: “Well, no. The Falkland islanders are British with a right to determine their own future. The UK’s position is clear. The islanders have repeatedly expressed their wish to remain a British overseas territory, and their right to self-determination is paramount.”

Replying to reports of some chanting about the Falklands from Argentine fans, the official spokesman said: “I think I think the Prime Minister’s view is that football should be about the game and about bringing people together. That’s what fans want to see.”

Buenos Aires has repeatedly claimed sovereignty over the Falkland Islands, which have been under British sovereignty since 1833.

Argentina was defeated in a short but deadly war after mounting an invasion on the territory in 1982, the shadow of which hangs over UK-Argentine relations to this day.

The islands, known as Islas Malvinas in Spanish, are about 8,000 miles from Britain and 300 miles from mainland Argentina.

England will face Argentina in Atlanta on Wednesday after their 2-1 victory against Norway last week.