An Argentine and Chilean Antarctic rupture with China and Russia over krill highlights growing tensions over the nature of Antarctic governance

A recent report by the Chinese Ministry of Science and Technology has found that 19% of the Antarctic ice sheet surface has melted over the past 20 years due to rising temperatures (CGTN, 2020). The loss of ice and higher temperatures especially impact already dwindling krill stocks, which are the basis for the Antarctic’s entire fauna ecosystem (Mathew Taylor, 2018).

The reports makes the recent political rejection at the 39th annual meeting of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Living Resources of the Argentine and Chilean proposal for the creation of a third “Maritime Protected Area” off the west coast of Antarctica, aimed among other things at safeguarding 75% of all remaining krill stocks from human-led depletion (Fermín Koop, 2020) all the riskier from a preservation angle.

It was vetoed by China and Russia (Chelsea Harvey, 2020), who have long sought to exploit Antarctic fisheries (Fermín Koop, 2020). Beijing has promised to double its krill fishing over the next four years due to rapidly increasing demand (Mark Godfrey, 2019). Meanwhile Russian illegal fishing is an issue, aided by the commission being unable to act despite evidence (Liz Allen, 2020) due to Russia’s ability to veto enforcement.  

The meetings failure is part of China and Russia’s broader move to shift current Antarctic governance away from one safeguarding preservation, as sought by Argentina and Chile who both view parts of the Antarctic as national territory (Adrian Howkins, 2017), and a key part of their national identities (Ignacio Cardone, 2020), and towards one that facilitates greater economic exploitation (Callum Hoare, 2020).