How to avoid anarchy in Antarctica
Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. ANTARCTICA IS THE only continent unbloodied by war. For over six decades peace on the frozen land mass has been kept by the Antarctic Treaty, an agreement signed in 1959 at the height of the cold war that established it as a demilitarised scientific preserve.
But much like its ice sheet, the system governing Antarctica is in trouble as global warming opens up the possibility of mining virgin resources. Seven countries, including Britain, Argentina, Australia and Norway, have territorial claims over the Antarctic. The carve-up of the continent reflects the world of the early 1900s: Britain, the naval hegemon at the time, and its former colonies grabbed almost 60%.
Norway, whose explorers were first to the South Pole, took a bit less than 20%. These claims do not reflect today’s geopolitical balance and are rejected by other powers such as China, which feels that it was squeezed out of the original scramble for Antarctica. Nor are they recognised by America and Russia, which both reserve the right to make future claims.
The only thing standing between a free-for-all land grab, or even conflict, is the treaty. When it came into force in 1961 it froze all territorial claims and prohibited countries from making new ones. Yet this status quo is now being threatened by a new scramble for the Antarctic.
A growing number of powers are racing to establish or expand their presence on the continent. This year Russia opened its tenth base and China its fifth, India is building a third and Turkey is planning its first. Iran has not signed the treaty but has said it wants an Antarctic base to claim its “property rights".
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