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Who Owns Antarctica? (If You Said No One, You’re Wrong)
The seventh continent is nice and carved up
Most people think of Antarctica as an untouched wilderness. A continent unclaimed by any nation, filled with ice and penguins. It is the last bastion of nature, exploration, and freedom on the planet. While that is a nice thought, it is not entirely true.
The perception of Antarctica as a peaceful wilderness that the world has agreed to let sit by the wayside is due in large part to the Antarctic Treaty of 1959. In this treaty, the continent was declared to be a demilitarized zone. The continent was set aside for purposes of peace and science, not territory or warfare. The Antarctic Treaty was signed by twelve nations: Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Chile, France, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, South Africa, the United Kingdom, the United States, and theUSSR.
You can read the text of the treaty here.
But despite the treaty, seven of the twelve nations to sign have made territorial claims on the continent. The vast majority of Antarctic lands are claimed by a state.
History has taught us that territorial claims are a tricky thing. The legitimacy of a claim is determined by two driving factors. 1) Do other nations recognize your claim? 2) Is the claimant willing to fight for their…
