- Taiwan retains death penalty but limits use to 'exceptional' cases
- Ferrari's Leclerc sets early pace in Singapore ahead of Norris
- 10 years into Huthi rule, some Yemenis count the cost
- France poised to finally get new govt
- Kompany, Alonso call for action on player workload amid strike talks
- Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson doubtful for Bournemouth clash
- Bumrah takes four as India bowl out Bangladesh for 149
- Sri Lanka 134-1 to take upper hand in first New Zealand Test
- Bayern's Kompany calls for game cap for players amid strike talks
- Christie's expands Hong Kong footprint in hope of art market 'pickup'
- Sultry screen legend Sophia Loren turns 90
- Cambodian opposition figure in court on incitement charge
- Bumrah takes three wickets to have Bangladesh in trouble at 112-8
- Kimchi threat as heatwave drives up South Korea cabbage prices
- UK economic data delivers fresh blow to new govt
- China to 'gradually resume' seafood imports from Japan after Fukushima ban
- India minister blames dam release for flooding
- O'Rourke strikes early for Kiwis as Sri Lanka trail by three
- Deep takes two as Bangladesh totter in reply to India's 376
- Israel pounds Lebanon's Hezbollah after device blasts
- Revolution or mirage? Controversy surrounds new Alzheimer's drugs
- Ashwin's 113 powers India to 376 in Bangladesh Test
- Biden opens home to 'Quad' leaders for farewell summit
- Sally Rooney returns with 30-something questions
- Wallabies sense 'massive' chance to upset All Blacks
- Taiwan questions two in probe into Hezbollah pagers
- Viral Korean Olympic shooter scores first acting role as assassin
- Farrell set for 'challenge' of downing Bordeaux in Top 14
- Springbok Etzebeth diverts attention from looming caps record
- Inter on a high ahead of Milan derby as Napoli face Juve test
- Bank of Japan leaves key interest rate unchanged
- Arnold quits after six years in charge of Australia
- Asian markets track Wall Street record to extend global rally
- Guirassy and Anton to return to Stuttgart with new side Dortmund
- Marseille bidding to continue 'almost perfect' Ligue 1 start
- Arnold quits as coach of Australia men's football team
- Harris and Oprah hold star-studded US election rally
- Allies to remember failed WWII parachute operation
- Perez leading new-look Villarreal charge against leaders Barca
- Man City face Arsenal in Premier League title showdown, Postecoglou under pressure
- Fake celebrity endorsements, snubs plague US presidential race
- Documentary brings Argentine 'death flights' to the big screen
- Strike shows challenge to Boeing 'reset' of labor relations
- World leaders to gather at UN as crises grow and conflicts rage
- How plastic pollution poses challenge for Canada marine conservation
- Scientists track plastic waste in pristine Canada marine park
- South Africa's Buhai grabs LPGA Queen City lead
- Japan inflation firms to 2.8% ahead of BoJ rate decision
- Russia's Kadyrov accuses Musk of 'remotely disabling' his Cybertruck
- Titan sub had to abort a dive days before fatal implosion: testimony
Australia wants 'eyes on Antarctica' with funding boost
Australia on Tuesday announced plans to boost its presence and surveillance operations on Antarctica, unveiling a US$575 million package designed to match China's growing interest in the pole.
Prime Minister Scott Morrison said the ten-year funding plan would give Australia "eyes on Antarctica" -- by increasing the country's ability to survey and monitor the frozen tundra and surrounding waters using drones, helicopters and autonomous vehicles.
Australia has territorial claims on 42 percent of Antarctica, the largest of any nation, but has lacked the capability to reach far-flung corners of the continent.
There has been concern in Canberra that the void could be exploited by Beijing or Moscow, both of which are becoming more active on the continent.
Nearly half of Australia's new funding will be spent on capabilities to move around inland areas, map Antarctica's remote east from the air using drones and the purchase of four new medium lift helicopters.
There are also a handful of environmental projects in the announcement, including US$5 million for research into climate change's impact on Antarctic ice sheets and supporting Pacific nations in monitoring rising sea levels.
Morrison refused to be drawn on his specific concerns about China's growing interest in Antarctica beyond saying, "They don't share the same objectives as Australia does."
China has built two year-round stations on Antarctica and its spending on Antarctic programmes has steadily increased.
But Beijing's footprint is dwarfed by the United States, which maintains the largest presence in Antarctica with about 1,400 personnel staffing its three all-year stations in summers before the pandemic.
The influential Australian Strategic Policy Institute recently warned in a report that Antarctica has become a venue for "geopolitical competition" and recommended steps to uphold a ban on military and mining activities.
Evan Bloom, the report's author and a Polar expert at the Woodrow Wilson Center, noted that while China and Russia are "heedless at times of calls to compromise" it was important for the US and Australia to "carefully manage relations with strategic competitors."
He said when it comes to the management of Antarctica, co-operation remained vital.
"Excluding China from science cooperation has the danger of giving credence to those within the Chinese Government who wish to argue that the ATS [Antarctic Treaty System] doesn't benefit it and doesn't deserve a long-term commitment," Bloom said.
C.Kovalenko--BTB