China announced that its first atmospheric monitoring station in Antarctica began operations earlier this week, according to the local outlet China Daily, which could be a move to push the country towards becoming a “polar great power.”
The National Atmospheric Background Station, which is part of the Zhongshan station, officially began its operations on December 1, to commemorate World Antarctica Day.
The station is the first of its kind to have been established in Antarctica for China, but the ninth of its kind outside of the polar region, according to the China Meteorological Association.
Not only will the station “bolster global response to climate change,” but it will also provide “continuous and long-term operational observation of the change of atmospheric composition and concentration in Antarctica,” the meteorological association announced.
Kyodo/Kyodo via AP
China’s move to boost its presence in the polar region could be part of the country’s aim to become a “polar great power,” which was something President Xi Jinping mentioned during a speech in November 2014, according to the Australian Policy Institute.
Experts have previously argued that China’s activities in Antarctica appear to be “designed to ensure that China will not be left out should there be beneficial opportunities in Antarctica in the future,” as Nong Hong from the Institute for China-America Studies wrote in a 2021 paper published by Science Direct.
Hong’s report added that China has a two-fold approach towards Antarctic governance, writing that the country is “generally both supportive of the Antarctic Treaty System (ATS) and also keen to make its own mark in shaping future development of the ATS in a manner that promotes China’s interests.”
The Antarctic Treaty System is a treaty that was signed by 12 countries in 1959 to ensure the continent is demilitarized, free of nuclear testing and a peaceful space for science collaboration.
Although, according to the Australian Strategic Policy…
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