During a visit to the Vatican today, Argentinian President Cristina Fernandez asked Pope Francis to make a public statement about the Falkland Islands.

Pope Francis, of course, is from Argentina and last year told veterans of the Falklands War “We come to pray for all who have fallen, sons of the Homeland who went out to defend their mother, the Homeland, and to reclaim what is theirs.”

However, The Falklands have never been Argentinian territory and 99.8% of its residents voted last week to remain a British territory. But as former Costa Rican Ambassador to the United States Jaime Daremblum has noted Fernandez has been escalating her rhetoric on the Falklands to distract from Argentina’s current fiscal mess.

The Pope would be wise to stay out of this but I wouldn’t be surprised if he were to accommodate Fernandez’s request. If he doesn’t reiterate his support for Argentina’s claim on The Falklands he may alienate his countrymen even if he risks offending Britons, Catholic or otherwise.