Catherine said: "The
Antarctic Treaty is in place to protect and support the scientific progress and preservation of the continent and there are strict regulations around contamination.
In Antarctica, rules and norms are governed by the 1959
Antarctic Treaty, signed by the twelve signatories that were active in the region at the time.
The
Antarctic Treaty was originally signed by twelve countries whose scientists worked on Antarctica in the late 1950s.
The
Antarctic Treaty was signed in October the next year and ratified in 1961 by the twelve national agencies involved in Antarctica.
First, during the Pre-Reform Period (1950s-78), PRC efforts to join the
Antarctic Treaty System (ATS) were thwarted by a combination of domestic challenges and Cold War geopolitics, best exemplified by the acceptance of the Republic of China (ROC) as the legitimate representative of the Chinese nation in the UN.
Antarctic treaty (1957), Hotline Agreement (1963), ABM treaty (1972), Strategic arms limitations talks SALT-I (1972), SALT-II (1979), Biological Toxic Weapon Convention-BTWC (1972), Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty-START I-II(1991-1993), Comprehensive Test ban Treaty-CTBT (1993), Chemical Weapons Convention- CWC (1997) and Fissile Material Cut off Treaty- FMCT (1998), these played a pivotal role to abolish nuclear weapons or control on the production of nuclear weapons capabilities in the world.
A number of books and articles have been written on Antarctica, although most have been on the
Antarctic Treaty (1959) and the international political and environmental dimensions of Antarctica.
A 1991 environmental accord banned mining for at least 50 years under the
Antarctic Treaty that preserves the continent for scientific research and wildlife, from penguins to seals.