Antarctic Treaty System: Encyclopedia II - Antarctic Treaty System - The Antarctic Treaty System

Antarctic Treaty System - The Antarctic Treaty System

Antarctic Treaty System - The Main Antarctic Treaty

The main treaty was opened for signature on December 1, 1959, and officially entered into force on June 23, 1961. The original signatories were the 12 countries active in Antarctica during the International Geophysical Year of 1957-58 and willing to accept a US invitation to the conference at which the treaty was negotiated. These countries were Argentina, Australia, Belgium, Chile, France, Japan, New Zealand, Norway, South Africa, the U.S.S.R., the United Kingdom and the United States of America (which opened the Amundsen-Scott South Pole Station for the International Geophysical Year).

• Article 1 - area to be used for peaceful purposes only; military activity, such as weapons testing, is prohibited, but military personnel and equipment may be used for scientific research or any other peaceful purpose;

• Article 2 - freedom of scientific investigation and cooperation shall continue;

• Article 3 - free exchange of information and personnel in cooperation with the United Nations and other international agencies;

• Article 4 - does not recognize, dispute, or establish territorial claims and no new claims shall be asserted while the treaty is in force;

• Article 5 - prohibits nuclear explosions or disposal of radioactive wastes;

• Article 6 - includes under the treaty all land and ice shelves south of 60 degrees 00 minutes south;

• Article 7 - treaty-state observers have free access, including aerial observation, to any area and may inspect all stations, installations, and equipment; advance notice of all activities and of the introduction of military personnel must be given;

• Article 8 - allows for jurisdiction over observers and scientists by their own states;

• Article 9 - frequent consultative meetings take place among member nations;

• Article 10 - treaty states will discourage activities by any country in Antarctica that are contrary to the treaty;

• Article 11 - disputes to be settled peacefully by the parties concerned or, ultimately, by the International Court of Justice;

• Articles 12, 13, 14 - deal with upholding, interpreting, and amending the treaty among involved nations.

The main objective of the ATS is to ensure in the interests of all mankind that Antarctica shall continue forever to be used exclusively for peaceful purposes and shall not become the scene or object of international discord. The treaty forbids any measures of a military nature, but not the presence of military personnel per se. It also defers the question of territorial claims asserted by some nations and not recognized by others.

Antarctic Treaty System - Other agreements

Other agreements - some 200 recommendations adopted at treaty consultative meetings and ratified by governments - include:

• Agreed Measures for the Conservation of Antarctic Fauna and Flora (1964) (entered into force in 1982)
• The Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Seals (1972)
• The Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (1980)
• The Convention on the Regulation of Antarctic Mineral Resource Activities (1988) (although it was signed in 1988, it was subsequently rejected and never entered into force)
• The Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty was signed 4 October 1991 and entered into force 14 January 1998; this agreement prevents development and provides for the protection of the Antarctic environment through five specific annexes on marine pollution, fauna, and flora, environmental impact assessments, waste management, and protected areas. It prohibits all activities relating to mineral resources except scientific research.

Adapted from the Wikipedia article "The Antarctic Treaty System", under the G.N U Free Docmentation License. Please also see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki