Parts of our globe (the polar regions), particularly important resources (international waterways), and outer space have required special treatment to preserve their unique features, to deal with their unusual characteristics or to protect the interests of states generally. Such special areas are often declared to be demilitarised. In some cases, a regime created by a treaty between only certain states is regarded as an ‘objective regime’, created not just for the benefit of those states, but also for the benefit of all (erga omnes).

Antarctica

Antarctica has been primarily a theatre for exploration and science; from the beginning expeditions to explore the continent included scientists. Over the years, many bases have been established in Antarctica for the purpose of conducting research, both the better to understand the continent itself and, more recently, to monitor changes in the global environment. The Antarctic continent is vast and empty. The Antarctic Treaty 1959 (in this section, ‘the Treaty’) applies to an even larger area: all land, ice shelves and water south of latitude 60° south. That is even larger than the area within the Antarctic Circle, an imaginary line drawn at latitude 66° 33′ South (latitude 60° North runs through the Shetland Islands, Scotland's most northerly islands). There is no permanent population in the Antarctic Treaty area.