MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

US and Russia joint team to inspect all foreign installations in Antarctica

The joint team will review adherence to Antarctic Treaty obligations

United States and the Russian Federation will send a joint team to inspect foreign stations, installations and equipment in Antarctica from January 23 to January 28, 2012. The inspection will be conducted pursuant to the Antarctic Treaty of 1959 and its Environmental Protocol.

The State Department and the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs will co-lead the inspection which is the first joint inspection conducted by either country, said an official release from the State Department.

The U.S. National Science Foundation (U.S. Antarctic Program) and the Russian Antarctic Expedition will support the joint inspection.

“The U.S.-Russian team will review adherence by Treaty Parties to their obligations, including with respect to limiting environmental impacts, ensuring that Antarctica is used only for peaceful purposes and that Parties honour the prohibition on measures of a military nature” underlined the release.

The United States last conducted an Antarctic inspection in 2006.

The Department of State coordinates U.S. policy on Antarctica with NSF and other federal agencies. It leads diplomatic efforts within the framework established by the 1959 Antarctic Treaty, signed in Washington, to ensure Antarctica’s status as a continent reserved for peace and science.

Currently 49 nations are signatories of the treaty, which sets aside Antarctica as a scientific preserve where military activity is banned.

Signed in 1991, the environmental protocol provides for environmental impact assessments and waste management, and designates protected areas in order to safeguard the pristine region's marine environment and its flora and fauna.