INTERVIEW | Executive Director of AthenaLab: "There is a large portion of Antarctica that is unclaimed. There is increasing interest in positioning oneself there ahead of a potential 'division.'"
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In a new edition of Rat Pack, Iván Valenzuela and Angélica Bulnes spoke with Juan Pablo Toro, executive director of AthenaLab, about the importance of the Chilean Antarctic Territory for the country’s foreign policy.
Tele 13 Radio, June 24, 2024
Regarding Argentina’s possible reasons for installing solar panels in part of Chilean territory in Antarctica, Toro stated that “specifically, any southern position reinforces your position in Antarctica, as these are known as sub-Antarctic spaces, which has an effect on projection because there are three overlapping claims in part of Antarctica: the British claim, ours, and the Argentine claim. If you keep placing more stakes, there is a tendency to strengthen your chances of making that claim effective in what, in our case, we consider national territory, because it is Chilean territory.”
When asked about the importance of the Antarctic territory for Chile’s foreign policy, the executive director of AthenaLab stated that “we are in an era of strategic competition, there is more competition and this extends to all corners and to the poles as well, with the differences that exist between the Arctic and Antarctica. In the case of Antarctica, no claims are made after the treaty, there is no one else claiming, and there is a large portion of Antarctica that is unclaimed; there are pieces of the pie to request. If there is more interest in positioning oneself there ahead of a potential ‘division.'”
Finally, the academic also pointed out that “the availability of resources in Antarctica is well known; it is known that there is oil, minerals, but above all, the immediately exploitable resources are the fishery resources, and there we always have Russia and China acting together, blocking all initiatives from Chile, Argentina, and Spain to create protected maritime areas; that is a significant issue.”
Source: Tele 13 Radio
