Falkland Islanders are casting their ballots on the final day of a two-day referendum designed to make clear their staunch desire to remain British, as Argentina derided the vote as illegal.
In a move instigated by residents themselves, the 1672 eligible voters were deciding whether they want the Falkland Islands to remain an internally self-governing British overseas territory.
An overwhelming 'yes' result, due within hours of the polls closing at 6pm (0800 AEDT) on the remote South Atlantic archipelago, is not in doubt, with islanders planning a party afterwards.
Argentina, which invaded the islands in 1982 before its troops were ousted by a British task force after a short but bloody war, maintained its dismissive line on the vote.
'It's a manoeuvre with no legal value, which has neither been convened nor supervised by the United Nations,' said Alicia Castro, Argentina's ambassador to London.
'We respect their way of life, their identity. We respect that they want to continue being British, but the territory they inhabit is not British,' she told Buenos Aires radio station La Red.
Buenos Aires has stepped up its sovereignty claims against the backdrop of the discovery of potentially valuable oil reserves in the terroritial waters of islands it calls Las Malvinas.
Despite the negative noises coming from Argentina, Falkland Islanders were in high spirits, with a party planned in the capital Stanley to cheer in the result with food, drinks, flags, music, and a rare mass photo.
Four-fifths of the archipelago's 2563 permanent residents live in the town, with its typically British pubs and red telephone boxes.
And for the referendum, homes and shops are festooned with posters and flags, both Britain's Union Jack and the deep blue Falklands standard, which features both the Union Jack and the islands' crest - a sheep, a wooden ship and the motto 'Desire the Right'.
