After Russia recently laid claim to a major portion of the Arctic floor near the Lomonosov ridge by planting an undersea national flag, now it’s the United Kingdom that is putting forward its claims to the UN for a large portion of seabed in the remote Antarctica in South Pole. Although Britain’s claim is less theatrical compared to the Russian one in the North Pole and more diplomatic, still the jury will be out on the validity of the act.
The Antarctica is largely remote and protected by an international law called the Antarctic Treaty which directs the signatories to put behind individual interests in favor of larger environmental issues. But the Antarctic is home to a huge amount of untapped mineral wealth, namely oil and gas, and marine life which might have made the British interested in laying such claims.
Energy is a common factor that drives nations to look for new frontiers supplying oil and gas to meet growing population demands. Britain largely depends on the Middle-East and Russia for her energy demands. But the increasing instability in the Middle-East and Russia’s cold war like attitude towards the west have made countries like the UK to look for other options to meet the growing energy needs in the country.
Interestingly, the United States have never made substantial claims of the Antarctic region. This may be due to Britain, being the most trusted ally of the US, has substantial political and economical interests in the region. Furthermore, US knows any British ambition in the region would serve Washington’s purpose as well.
With most of South America embracing socialism day by day, anti-American attitude is on the rise concerning the Americans. In order to curb this trend somewhat, Britain might be America’s best bait.
Britain’s claim of the Antarctic would definitely raise the temperature in the region as for sure other South American nations would provide their own claims in the region. Argentina and Britain already fought a bloody war in the 1980’s over the claim of the Falkland Islands off the Argentinean coast.
Many analysts think that Russia might just also take advantage of the situation and put its money behind the South American countries in order to increase its influence in the region and further increasing the tensions with Britain and America as a whole.
With global warming regularly melting ice and glaciers, more polar regions would become navigable leading to more future claims.
Link:Reuters
