Israel has denied that it will back Argentina's claim to the Falkland Islands in response to Foreign Secretary Ed Miliband's West Bank sanctions. 

A recent report by The Telegraph claimed that Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu told diplomats to change the country's official position and back Argentine President Javier Milei in calling for direct talks about the future of the South Atlantic archipelago. 

Mr Netanyahu also called for Israel to recognise Argentina's historical connection to the territory, according to the report. 

Mr Milei recently stepped up efforts to draw attention back to the Falklands, or 'Las Malvinas', as they're known in Argentina, and last month reaffirmed his country's claim to sovereignty over the islands at the UN General Assembly in New York. 

Reports of Netanyahu's change in stance over the British territory came after Mr Miliband announced a sanctions package last month while accusing Israel of 'ethnic cleansing'. The move sparked a diplomatic row that led to the re-organisation of the British consulate in Jerusalem. 

However, Israeli officials have denied claims that the country is backing Argentina's claim to sovereignty over the islands.

Diplomat Alex Gandler, who is serving as the spokesman for the Israeli embassy in London, responded to the report in an X post, saying: 'I categorically deny this allegation. No such directive exists.'

Mr Miliband's economic sanctions over West Bank settlements last month were branded as 'despicable' by Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Sa'ar. 

He said Israel would expel UK representatives from a joint military centre monitoring the Gaza ceasefire and end UK training of the Palestinian Authority's security forces in the West Bank.

In addition, Israel barred entry to a dozen British lawmakers and other UK citizens whom Mr Sa'ar said were 'involved in anti-Semitic and anti-Israel activity'. 

Under Mr Netanyahu's ultranationalist government, settlement construction in the West Bank has surged.

He sees the territory – which was seized by Israel in 1967 – as the biblical and historical homeland of the Jewish people.

The Falklands, located 300 miles off Argentina, have been a British overseas territory since 1833. In 1982, Argentina's then-military dictatorship invaded the islands, sparking the Falklands War, which killed hundreds of troops on both sides. 

Last month, Mr Milei's government introduced a sweeping security bill that would toughen sanctions on companies exploiting resources around the Falkland Islands without Argentine authorisation, create a national security council chaired by Mr Milei and expand the military's role in protecting critical Argentine infrastructure.

He also vowed to halt an oil project near the Falklands and, during a meeting at the UN General Assembly, called on Britain to resume negotiations to 'find a peaceful solution to the sovereignty dispute'.

'Today I come to say that Argentina will not sit and wait for the UN and the international community to live up to their own mandate,' he said. 

He also sharply criticised the UN and its role, accusing it of becoming 'a useless organisation that serves only to feed a caste of fatally arrogant parasites masquerading as well-intentioned bureaucrats'. 

Prime Minister Andy Burnham responded by saying the UK's position is 'clear' and that it will 'stand firm' in the face of any threats. 

'We will defend the right of the ⁠Falkland Islanders to self-determination and to remain British.'

In a 2013 referendum, the islanders voted overwhelmingly to remain a British overseas territory, with 99.8 per cent voting in favour and just three votes against.