India in April/May 2007; at these periodic meetings, decisions are
made by consensus (not by vote) of all consultative member nations;
at the end of 2007, there were 46 treaty member nations: 28
consultative and 18 non-consultative; consultative (decision-making)
members include the seven nations that claim portions of Antarctica
as national territory (some claims overlap) and 21 non-claimant
nations; the US and Russia have reserved the right to make claims;
the US does not recognize the claims of others; Antarctica is
administered through meetings of the consultative member nations;
decisions from these meetings are carried out by these member
nations (with respect to their own nationals and operations) in
accordance with their own national laws; the years in parentheses
indicate when a consultative member-nation acceded to the Treaty and
when it was accepted as a consultative member, while no date
indicates the country was an original 1959 treaty signatory;
claimant nations are - Argentina, Australia, Chile, France, NZ,
Norway, and the UK. Nonclaimant consultative nations are - Belgium,
Brazil (1975/1983), Bulgaria (1978/1998) China (1983/1985), Ecuador
(1987/1990), Finland (1984/1989), Germany (1979/1981), India
(1983/1983), Italy (1981/1987), Japan, South Korea (1986/1989),
Netherlands (1967/1990), Peru (1981/1989), Poland (1961/1977),
Russia, South Africa, Spain (1982/1988), Sweden (1984/1988), Ukraine
(1992/2004), Uruguay (1980/1985), and the US; non-consultative
members, with year of accession in parentheses, are - Austria
(1987), Belarus (2006), Canada (1988), Colombia (1989), Cuba (1984),
Czech Republic (1962/1993), Denmark (1965), Estonia (2001), Greece
(1987), Guatemala (1991), Hungary (1984), North Korea (1987), Papua
New Guinea (1981), Romania (1971), Slovakia (1962/1993), Switzerland
(1990), Turkey (1996), and Venezuela (1999); note - Czechoslovakia
acceded to the Treaty in 1962 and separated into the Czech Republic
and Slovakia in 1993; Article 1 - area to be used for peaceful
purposes only; military activity, such as weapons testing, is
prohibited, but military personnel and equipment may be used for
scientific research or any other peaceful purpose; Article 2 -
freedom of scientific investigation and cooperation shall continue;
Article 3 - free exchange of information and personnel, cooperation
with the UN and other international a