Latin America in the Antarctic: History and Politics between the Second World War and the Antarctic Treaty, 1945-1959

Giovannina Sutherland Condorelli is a lawyer and PhD candidate in Law at the University of Chile. She is a doctoral student at the Millennium Biodiversity Institute of Antarctic and Sub-Antarctic Ecosystems and Associate Researcher at the Millennium Nucleus on the Impacts of China in Latin America and the Caribbean (ICLAC).

Abstract

In 1956, India proposed including the so-called “The Question of Antarctica” on the agenda of the 11th Session of the United Nations General Assembly to promote the internationalization of the Antarctic Continent. This initiative could have opened the possibility of debating legal regimes contrary to existing claims of sovereign rights, such as trusteeship and the Common Heritage of Mankind, thereby placing States that had already advanced territorial claims—such as Chile, which delimited its Chilean Antarctic Territory in 1940—in a complex position that prompted the design of a diplomatic strategy. In this context, the figure of Miguel Serrano assumes relevance. In his capacity as Chile’s Chargé d’Affaires in India—subsequently appointed as Chile’s first ambassador to that country—he undertook diplomatic efforts that enabled direct communication with Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, resulting in India’s decision to withdraw the proposal during that period. Over time, this episode has been subject to various forms of mythmaking, particularly regarding the circumstances under which the meeting with Nehru allegedly took place, in contrast to the unsuccessful efforts undertaken by other diplomatic representatives, such as the Argentine ambassador, Vicente Fatone, and the United States representative, Sherman Cooper.

Methodologically, the study combines a critical review of specialized scholarship—including contributions by Chilean authors such as Oscar Pinochet de la Barra, Pablo Mancilla, Mauricio Jara, and Oscar Barrientos, as well as foreign authors such as Adrian Howkins, Chaturvedi Sanjay, and Klaus Dodds—with an analysis of official documentation from Chile’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This approach enables historiographical narratives to be contrasted with contemporaneous diplomatic records, thereby contributing to a more precise understanding of Miguel Serrano’s role and Chilean diplomatic practice at a moment now regarded as pivotal to the signing of the Antarctic Treaty in 1959.

Abstract

This research examines the evolution of Uruguay's relationship with the Antarctic continent from the end of the Second World War to the signing of the Antarctic Treaty in 1959. This period was characterized by a transition from commercial interests in maritime logistics support and whaling to an emerging geopolitical awareness amid early Cold War tensions in the South Atlantic. It is considered the complex diplomatic scenario in the Southern Cone, characterized by overlapping sovereignty claims among Argentina, Chile, and the United Kingdom, and by the "Antarctic struggle" arising from these disputes, highlighting the Uruguayan's diplomatic position, balancing its alignment with U.S. Pan-Americanism against regional pressures, particularly from Perón´s government in Argentina, which wanted support for its anti-imperialist and territorial agendas.

A central focus is pointed on the development of a national Antarctic doctrine, spearheaded by Navy Captain Carlos Travieso, detailing his theoretical formulation of an “Uruguayan Antarctica"—specifically, his proposal to claim the sector between 20°W and 25°W— and the establishment of a meteorological station on Bouvet Island to assert rights under the Atlantic projection. These initiatives, aimed at preventing the region from becoming a "springboard for attack" against the hemisphere, often clashed with the government's cautious and hesitant posture.

The research also analyzes the strategic role of the Port of Montevideo as a logistical hub, serving as a critical gateway for Norwegian and British fleets and, later, for the Soviet whaling fleet (notably the Slava), which raised alarms within U.S. intelligence agencies about the communist influence in the region. Furthermore, the paper documents the first direct Uruguayan experiences in the Antarctic territory during the late 1950s. This includes Navy officers invited to join Argentine campaigns, journalists documenting the Antarctic region for the public, and meteorologist Juan Mario Nantes, who overwintered twice at the British Base F (Faraday).

The paper concludes that, although domestic economic crises and diplomatic indecision prevented Uruguay from becoming an original signatory to the Antarctic Treaty, the intellectual debates and individual activities coming from this decade laid the necessary foundations for the country’s future institutional integration into the Antarctic System.