Antinuclear

The state of the art RSV Nuyina — which was floated last month — will primarily support Australia’s scientific research team in Antarctica, but it also has another purpose: shoring up our territorial claim to 42 per cent of the icy continent, where countries including China and Russia have been ramping up their presence……..

What is Australia’s role in Antarctica?

The Australian Antarctic Territory covers a whopping 5.9 million square kilometres, making it nearly 80 per cent of the size of Australia and the largest Antarctic claim of any country, according to the Australian Antarctic Division.

Australia has three year-round research stations on Antarctica, as well as one on Macquarie Island, and conducts dozens of scientific research programs.

But in recent years Antarctic experts have been critical of the Australian Government’s commitment to our efforts on the icy continent, both in terms of funding and attention.

“Australia’s standing in Antarctic affairs is eroding because of historical underinvestment at a time when new players are emerging in Antarctica,” expert Tony Press warned in a 2014 Government-commissioned report.

“The leadership that Australia has naturally assumed by its proximity, history, and experience, now risks decline.”

Who are the new players and what are they doing there?

Six other countries lay claim to parts of Antarctica — Argentina, Australia, Chile, France, New Zealand, Norway, and the United Kingdom — while many more also have research stations there and take part in joint scientific projects.

In the past decade, China and Russia in particular have both ramped up their presence in Antarctica.

China in particular has become a “leading polar player” in just 10 years and now spends more in Antarctica than any other country, according to a report by Anne Marie Brady, an expert on China and the Antarctic at the University of Canterbury in New Zealand……….

there remains a divide between the countries that want to keep it pristine, such as Australia and New Zealand, and the ones that hope to eventually exploit its potential, like China and Russia, as global resources decline and a ban on mining comes up for renegotiation in 2048.

But even more crucial, according to Dr Brady, is that Antarctica has emerged as a site of global strategic importance………

What does this mean for Antarctica’s future — and ours?

The Antarctic Treaty of 1959 does not necessarily guarantee Australia’s claim to territory on the icy continent, as many people seem to think.

In fact, La Trobe University’s Daniel Bray says that the treaty “essentially set aside all claims to Antarctica in order to create a legal [framework] to manage human activity on the continent”.

“It’s the only part of the world where you have a territory that’s managed without sovereignty, and that is really misunderstood in the Australian public,” he says………. https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-10-28/china-and-russia-are-eyeing-up-antarctica/10433024