China and Australia have been actively developing the Antarctic in recent years, and the Australian think tank Loy Institute has released a report warning that Australia’s proposed construction of a runway near the Davis Research Station in Antarctica may prompt China to move forward with similar plans at the Zhongshan Station, breaking the Antarctic Treaty’s strict restrictions on the development of the Antarctic, and causing geopolitical and defense concerns once an airport is built at the Zhongshan Station.
The Australian government is expected to announce progress on the runway plan at next month’s Antarctic Treaty meeting and make a final decision on whether to build a runway next year.
Australia announced its intention to build a 2.6-kilometer runway at Davis Station in 2018, which would be the first concrete runway in Antarctica and the largest infrastructure on the island. But outside criticism of the construction will damage the Antarctic ecology, so that Australia lost the credibility of the leadership of the Antarctic Treaty. The report recommends that Australia should first improve local environmental laws in the Antarctic region to ensure that the development of the Antarctic can take into account the special ecology of the area and seek international recognition, in order to ensure Australia’s long-term leadership in the Antarctic.
On the other hand, China also intends to build an airport near the Antarctic Zhongshan Station that will allow aircraft to land and depart throughout the year. The report notes that China began promoting the idea of “balancing Antarctic conservation and development” in 2017, in an attempt to shift the focus of the Antarctic treaty system from conservation to sustainable development. If Australia uses a bill that only applies to environmental matters in Australia as the legal basis for building an airport in Antarctica, it will not be able to counter China, but will instead open the way for an airport at Zhongshan Station and create geopolitical and security concerns for Australia.
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