AJ JANi. 11993 11N The cover is based on an 1898 photograph of the Belgian ship Belgica by moonlight while trapped in pack ice in Antarctica's Bellingshausen Sea from March 1898 to March 1899. The photograph is used with the permission of the Nationaal Scheepvaartmuseum, Antwerp. Belgica, under the command of Captain Adrien de Gerlache, was the first vessel to "winter over" in the Antarctic. Serving in Belgica were Roald Amundsen, the Norwegian explorer who was the first to reach the South Pole in 1911, and Dr. Frederick Cook, an American who later claimed to be the first person to reach the North Pole. Artwork for the cover by Juan Medrano AMERICA ON THE ICE Accesion For NTIS CRA&I DTIC TAB lyl'C Q1•I••C'gD untfiannounced'••""••--- Byy ....-.... Distribution f Availability Codes Avail and/or Dist Special Statement A per George Maerz NDU-NSS-RD Washington, DC 20319-6000 Nm4 1/11/93 NSF Ph,ý bý R. K-.n American scientist on the South Polar Plateau. AMERICA ON THE ICE Antarctic Policy Issues Frank G. Klotz - 1990 -1 -o -.. National Defense University Press I Fort Lesley J. Mc Nair O) Washington, DC 93 1 04 082 National Defense University Press Publications To increase general knowledge and inform discussion, NDU Press publishes books on sub- jects relating to US national security. Each year, in this effort, the National Defense University, through the Institute for National Strategic Studies, hosts about two dozen Senior Fellows who engage in original research on national security issues. NDU Press publishes the best of this research. In addition, the Press publishes other espccially timely or distinguished writing on national security, as well as new editions of out-of-print defense classics, and books based on University-sponsored conferences concerning national security affairs. Opinions, conclusions, and recommendations expressed or implied within are solely those of the author, and do not necessarily represent the views of the National Defense University, the Department of Defense. or any other US Government agency. Cleared for public release; distribution unlimited. The photograph on page 15, and on which the cover art is based, is protected by copyright: permission to reprint it must be obtained from Nationaal Scheepvaartmuseum, Antwerp. Other portions of this book may be quoted or reprinted without permission, provided that a standard source credit line is included. NDU Press would appreciate a courtesy copy of reprints or reviews. William A. Palmer. Jr., Cheltenham, Md., proofread the page proofs of this book, under contract DAHC32-90-A-0035. Connie Moy, Editorial Experts. Inc., Alexandria, Va.. indexed this book, under contract DAHC32-90-0032. NDU Press publications are sold by the US Government Printing Office. For ordering infor- mation, call (202) 783-3238 or write to the Superintendent of Documents. US Government Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402. Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data Klotz. Frank G., 1950- America on the ice : Antarctic policy issues / Frank G. Klotz. p. cm. Includes bibliographical references (p. ) and index. I. Antarctic regions-International status. 2. United States-Foreign r, lations-- 1945- I. Title JX4084.A5K56 1990 .341.2'9'09989-dc 20 90-13300 CIP First printing, November 1990. vi To my wife, Nancy, and our favorite "adventurers," Justin and David Contents Illustrations xi Foreword xiii Preface xv Acknowledgments xxi Chronology xxiii 1. Antarctica Before the Treaty 3 Rival Territorial Claims-Cold War Dimension- International Geophysical Year-Conference on Antarctica 2. The Antarctic Treaty System 35 The Antarctic Treaty 35 Duration-Scope-An Arms Control Agreement-A Claims Settlemert-A Science Compact-An Admin- istrative Framework Operation and Expansion of the Treaty System 53 Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meetings- Recommendations-Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Seals-Convention on the Conservation of Ant- arctic Marine Living Resources An Appraisal of the System 77 3. Challenges to the Antarctic Treaty System 81 Antarctic Resources-Participation in Antarctic Policymaking-The Sovereignty Time Bomb 4. US Interests in the Antarctic 129 Current US Policy 130 Organization for Policymaking 136 The Bureaucracy-Congress-Interest Groups The Policymaking Process 155 ix 5. The US Antarctic Program 159 Scientific Activities-Antarctic Stations-Logistics Support-Managing the Logistics Program-Maintaining an Influential American Presence in the Years Ahead Appendixes A. The Antarctic Treaty 195 B. Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Seals 203 C. Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) 215 D. Convention on the Regulation of Antarctic Mineral Resource Activities 235 Notes 293 Selected Bibliography 319 Abbreviations 327 Index 329 The Author 345 Illustrations Maps 1. Territorial claims in the Antarctic 6 2. Drake Passage 22 3. Scope of the Antarctic Treaty 41 4. The Antarctic Convergence 42 5. Gondwanaland 88 6. Year-round Antarctic stations 119 7. The frontage theory 126 8. McMurdo Sound (including Marble Point) 168 Photographs American scientist on South Polar plateau Frontispiece 6,000-year-old "dirty ice" 4 Belgica, home for first "wintering-over," 1898 15 Mail arrives aboard USS BEAR, 1939-41 17 American aviators explore vast Antarctic stretches 19 Admiral Byrd during 1947 Operation High Jump 23 Adm. Byrd prepares for first Operation Deep Freeze 28 Flags indicate original Treaty signatories 36 Military personnel support scientific activities 45 On-ice research project 49 Scott hut preserved as historic monument 61 Krill is major food source 62 Weddell Seal, one of six seal species in Antarctica 66 Scientists tag seals 68 Penguins benefit from marine resources convention 71 xi Drilling granite cores 82 Oil development may endanger Skua, Emperor Penguin 94 Marine resource research 100 Scientist adjusts pyrheliometer 130 Mt. Erebus, site of 1979 aircraft crash 135 Seismic station on Abbott Peak, Mt. Erebus 147 Helicopter lands on deck of icebreaker POLAR SEA 160 Ice ablation study in "dirty ice" 164 Weather balloon is launched at South Pole Station 166 McMurdo Station. logistics hub of US Antarctic program 170 Amundsen-Scott Station establishes US presence 172 Paul Siple. American scientist and explorer 174 Ski-equipped LC-130 is workhorse of Antarctic program 176 POLAR SEA supports US operations 180 Scientists conduct research from tents 187 Scientists pose with Opus at South Pole Endpiece Tables I. Parties to the Antarctic Treaty 38-39 2. Antarctic Treaty consultative meetings, 1961-89 55 3. US Antarctic program budget requests and appropriations 145 4. House hearings on Antarctic issues 149-50 5. Senate hearings on Antarctic issues 152 xii Foreword Working together under the highly successful Antarctic Treaty of 1959, the United States and other nations have quietly and peacefully pursued exploration and scientific research in Antarctica. The treaty, however, could be subject to major revi- sion in 1991 and possibly even elimination. It is therefore impor- tant to review US national interests in anticipation of a new treaty arrangement that may necessitate modifying US policy toward Antarctica. Frank Klotz examines Antarctica before the 1959 treaty. and then scrutinizes the operation of the treaty itself. In doing so, he notes that three significant challenges to continued coop- eration in the Antarctic have arisen despite 30 years of interna- tional cooperation. First, as the world has become more aware of dwindling natural resources, the modest discoveries in the Ant- arctic are attracting more attention. Second, certain nations, not signatories to the treaty, have questioned the fight of the treaty members to control resource development. Third. disputes over territorial sovereignty remain to be resolved. As competition for resources increases, the issue of "who owns the Antarctic" could lead to contention. This thoughtful study provides a sound framework for crafting a US strategy on these emerging Antarctic issues. 6 A. BALDWIN Vice Admiral, US Navy President, National Defense University xiii Preface Most works on the Antarctic describe the region with a series of forbidding extremes. The continent is said to be the coldest, driest, highest, windiest, and most remote place on earth. At least one other extreme merits inclusion on this list: Antarctica also is the most neglected continent in both the prac- tice and study of American national security policy. The reasons for this neglect are not hard to fathom. Precisely because of all Antarctica's extremes, only a hand- ful of Americans have ever expressed an interest in the region. During the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries, sailors from New England explored the waters of the Southern Ocean in search of seals for trade. Later, commercial exploitation of the region's living resources gave way to heroic feats by famous explorers. The adventures of Roald Amundsen, Robert Falcon Scott, and Admiral Richard Byrd opened up the Antarctic in both a literal and figurative sense, as the popular imagination became seized with the haunting images of the last earthly frontier. Yet, for all its majestic beauty, the Antarctic never pos- sessed sufficient wealth or strategic significance to command broad and sustained attention from the American body politic. Even as more Americans became aware of the region, Antarctica remained the province of the few. Indeed today, it is populated only by a small circle of scientists, and the civilian and military officials who support