Are we heading for a new Cold War in Antarctica?

Russia’s reported discovery of 510 billion barrels of oil in Antarctica has led to warnings of a new ‘Cold War’ of sorts. ‘Russia could rip up a decades-old treaty and claim oil-rich Antarctic land,’ Yahoo News told its readers. The Daily Telegraph said ‘Russia (has) sparked fears of an oil grab in British Antarctic territory’.

The reaction to the find – which was made in evidence submitted to the House of Commons Environment Audit Committee – suggested there was potential for conflict. Some of this alleged oil is thought to be in the Weddell Sea, a remote body of water that happens to be part of what the UK would term ‘British Antarctic Territory’, or, as their counterparts in Buenos Aires and Santiago would prefer to refer to it, the Argentine and Chilean Antarctic Territories. The prospect of Moscow eyeing up the possible resources of a portion of Antarctica claimed and counter-claimed by three other nations set alarm bells ringing.