Iranian Navy Commander Rear Admiral Shahram Irani announced in September last year that the country owned Antarctica and would build a military operation there, Fox News reported on Thursday.

"We have property rights in the South Pole. We have plan to raise our flag there and carry out military and scientific work," Fox News quoted Iranian Navy Commander Rear Admiral Shahram Irani as saying then.

As anticipated, Iran's unprecedented claim of ownership over Antarctica poses a significant challenge to the Antarctic Treaty of 1959, a pact initially signed by twelve original consultative nations.

According to the treaty, Antarctica may only be used for peaceful, scientific reasons. Threats from Iran, however, aimed to overturn the historic ruling that had previously fostered global collaboration and solidarity. The US State Department has reacted to the possibility of an Iranian military camp in Antarctica, following an attack by militias backed by Iran that resulted in the deaths of three US soldiers in Jordan last month.

In a response to a query, if the recent US unfreezing of $6 billion in Iranian funds held in Qatar could be used by Tehran to set up a base in the South Pole, the US State Department spokesperson said no.

"No. Iran’s funds held in Qatar may not be used for any activities in Antarctica," the spokesperson said, adding that "those funds can only be used to purchase humanitarian goods, meaning food, medicine, medical devices, and agricultural products".

The release of Iranian funds by Joe Biden faced strong disapproval from critics who believed that it provided access to resources leading up to the October 7 Hamas attacks on Israel. Mahmoud Abbas, the President of the Palestinian National Authority, has previously asserted that Iran funds Hamas.

Ebrahim Raisi, Iran's President, spoke up against Biden's administration's constraints, declaring that the assets will be used “wherever we need it”.

Some critics have questioned Iran's claimed ownership rights in the South Pole. In addition to violating the strongly held Antarctic Treaty, the possible military base imagery also poses a threat to global security.

"Iran's future plans to try to expand its military presence and influence into the Antarctic would not only violate multilateral conventions on the issue but continues the regime's trend of aggression across the globe," Fox News quoted Yonah Jeremy Bob, author of "Target Tehran" and a senior Jerusalem Post military and intelligence analyst as saying.

Image source: Memri TV