One century of US policy toward Antarctica

Bibliographic Data

ID9224910
AuthorsWilliam Muntean (0000-0002-7850-5645, Henrico Doctors' Hospital, corresponding author)
Year2025
Volume61
Publication date2025-01-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenuePolar Record (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0032-2474 • E-ISSN: 1475-3057
PublisherCambridge University Press (CUP) (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1017/s0032247425000075
OpenAlexW4409651196
LanguageEN
References cited35

One century ago, US Secretary of State Charles Evan Hughes made the first official statement regarding US policy toward Antarctica by declaring it would not recognise sovereignty in areas that could not actually be settled. The Hughes Doctrine formalised US opposition to countries dividing Antarctica into sovereign territory, a doctrine that has become the bedrock upon which subsequent US decisions toward the region were built. This paper gives a broad overview of the development of US policy toward Antarctica, starting with the Hughes Doctrine, including the period when the United States secretly considered making its own claim to sovereign territory before deciding to champion then maintain the multilateral, sovereign-free region based on the Antarctic Treaty in order to achieve its national goals. This paper also reviews how the policies are working today and considers the significant challenges and costs the United States would incur if it altered its century-old policy toward Antarctica

Geography · Geology · Oceanography · Planetary Science and Exploration · Polar Research and Ecology · Space exploration and regulation

Tools

Open DOIOpen Access