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China pressures Argentina to build a naval base that provides easy access to Antarctica's bounty. [1]
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Date: 2023-01-09
The government building in the city of Ushuaia with typical local architecture. The city is in the "Provincia de Tierra del Fuego, Antártida e Islas del Atlántico Sur" province of Argentina. Only 680 nautical miles from the Antarctica peninsula.
The Chinese government has pressured Tierra del Fuego, Argentina, governor Gustavo Melella for the second time to approve the construction of a naval base at the port in Ushuaia, which most believe provides them the gateway to Antarctica that they have desired for decades. The governor favors Chinese investment in the Tierra del Fuego.
In addition, the base would give China control of the Beagle Channel, which runs through the archipelago between Chile and Argentina. It is one of only three waterways, the Straits of Magellan and the Drake passage being the other two located between the Pacific and Atlantic oceans in the Southern Hemisphere. That control would allow Beijing to monitor communications throughout the hemisphere, "which would amount to a clear and massive interference by the Asian country in international affairs." claimed the French news site Intelligence Online." (behind a paywall). Infobae Argentina has the backstory of the first attempt at a naval base, petrochemical port, and facility.
Ushuaia, Argentina, is the world's southernmost city below the 54th parallel south latitude. Its location and extensive bay support a population of 80,000 with an economy based on Antarctic tourism and light industrial activity. The city is 680 miles from peninsular Antarctica and is known as the largest of five recognized Antarctica gateway cities. The city is 680 miles from the frozen continent and is the beginning and end of cruise liners' trips to the ice wall.
Separately the US Embassy has warned Argentina's national politicians about the security risks for the region with this deal brokered by XI and the governor.
Translated from Spanish by Google.
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