VATICAN CITY- Pope Francis caused tensions between Argentina and the United Kingdom to resurface when he was “tricked” into holding a sign which called for talks about the ownership of the Falkland Islands.

 Amongst the babies, flags, and shirts handed to the pope at the end of the general audience, when the followers have the chance to meet the Pope face to face, the pontiff was handed a placard which said “The time for dialogue between Argentina and the United Kingdom about the Falklands is now”, rekindling an international controversy that began over thirty years ago.

 The Falklands (known as Las Malvinas to Argentines) have remained a source of diplomatic tension between the two nations, ever since the British victory in the 10-week war over their ownership in 1982.

 Argentinian activist Gustavo Hoyo, who gave the pope the placard, managed to photograph the moment when he held it, shortly after posting it to social media. Upon assuming the office in the Vatican in 2013, the Argentinan pope has remained tight-lipped over the Falklands debate, but has often mentioned “opening a dialogue” between the two nations, and referring to his home country in patriotic terms.

 Therefore the photo has been hugely significant for Argentines, who see this as a clear sign of the pontiff’s support. Argentina head of state Kristina Kirchner also tweeted the image with the hashtag #MalvinasArgentinas.

 The Holy See, in an attempt to bury the controversy, said that the Pope did not realise what the placard said until seeing the photos online: “the photo was taken in the context of a general audience in which many Catholics hand to Pope Francis many objects, often for them to be photographed.”

 However Hoyo says otherwise, explaining that he had described what his campaign was about to the pontiff and that he had willingly obliged: “(Pope Francis) would have been able to choose not to do it, but instead he did.”