By South China Morning Post | Created at 2026-06-03 00:11:58 | Updated at 2026-06-07 18:17:17
4 days ago
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Japanese lawmaker’s claim that China has its eyes on “a treasure trove” of resource wealth hidden beneath the Antarctic ice sheet has been dismissed by a polar law expert as a misreading of international obligations.
But the claims made in parliament by Mitsuhiro Yokota, a member of the Japan Innovation Party, have also raised questions about what might happen to the world’s last great wilderness in future.
“Beneath Antarctica lies a treasure trove of oil, natural gas, coal, iron ore, gold and platinum,” Yokota told a Foreign Affairs Committee in the Diet on May 15.
“China naturally wants to acquire Antarctic resources. After all, they are talking about taking resources from the moon.”
Mitsuhiro Yokota, Japanese lawmaker
