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UK's Antarctica claim may lead to conflict with Chile

It has been a while since one could say the sun never set on the British empire, but the island nation is again trying to extend its reach. This time the prize could be large sea beds in the Antarctic and the Atlantic Ocean.

The land grab is part of a UN treaty that allows coastal countries to claim a continental shelf up to 350 nautical miles (645km) off their shores and the right to search for oil and natural gas there.

Britain is one of nine countries that already have filed such claims, and more are expected, but the Antarctic claims are likely to be among the most contentious.

The claim on the seabed would extend from the boundaries of the British Antarctic Territory -- land Britain first claimed in 1908. The claim to extend British sovereignty in Antarctica could spark disputes with Argentina and Chile, which are likely to make overlapping claims in the region.

If the UK and other nations go ahead with claims in the Antarctic, they could violate the 1959 Antarctic Treaty and related agreements, which set aside the continent as a scientific preserve and prohibited all activities relating to mineral resources except scientific ones, said Robin Churchill, a professor of international law at Dundee University in Scotland.

"I think there's potential for a huge conflict here," Churchill said. "The worse case scenario is that this dispute could lead to the end of the Antarctic Treaty itself, which I think would be a tragedy. The Antarctic Treaty has prevented disputes over the Antarctic and it's been a framework for a huge amount of scientific research and research into the ozone layer."

Other experts suggest the Antarctic should be treated differently than other claims.

"The Antarctic has long been recognized as a special continent that should be protected from exploitation and overdevelopment," said Martin Pratt, a specialist on international boundaries at the University of Durham in northern England. "The planet is under threat in so many ways, including global warming. This last wilderness should be left alone."

John Sauven, executive director of Greenpeace-UK, said Britain's plans are not in keeping with its claims that it will fight global warming. Only six months ago former British foreign secretary Margaret Beckett raised climate change as an issue with the UN Security Council, he said.

"The same Foreign Office is claiming ownership of one of the world's last remaining pristine wildernesses to drill for more fossil fuels," Sauven said.

Under article 76 of the UN Convention of the Law of the Sea, which came into force in 1994, coastal countries have 10 years after they ratify the treaty to claim a larger portion of a continental shelf. Earlier treaties allowed countries to claim only territory only 200 nautical miles (370km) from the coast.

So far, nine coastal countries have submitted claims to the UN Commission on the Limits of the Continental Shelf: Britain, Russia, Brazil, Australia, Ireland, New Zealand, France, Spain and Norway. The commission will rule on each application.
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