China plans new science station in Antarctica
May 29, 2017 Category Science & technology, Weekly
China has pledged to further expand its presence in Antarctica, including building its fifth research station. Officials in Beijing said the country was still lagging behind the U.S., Russia and Norway in exploring and studying the polar regions, which did not match China’s status as “a great country”. But they said China had no ambition to exploit the vast resources underneath the frozen continent. “China is expected, on the basis of advancing scientific cognition of the polar regions, to elevate its Antarctic activities,” according to a white paper issued by the State Oceanic Administration (SOA) on the occasion of the 40thAntarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting in Beijing. Since 1985, China has built four stations in Antarctica, two in the past decade, with the Kunlun station occupying the highest spot on the continent, Dome A. The U.S. has five research stations in Antarctica and Russia has eight. Qin Weijia, Director of SOA’s polar expedition office, said China had not spent enough on its polar efforts in the past. The white paper also expressed China’s willingness to enhance international polar cooperation, naming Norway as a potential partner, the South China Morning Post reports.
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