This topic brings to mind one kinda-sorta conspiracy theory that (GASP!) may actually have some validity. If you find this to be ridiculous, please feel free to beat me down severely.
I'm very familiar with Antarctica, having written 2 books that take place entirely or partially at McMurdo station (largest US installation down there) and thus I've interviewed a lot of folks who work there and done a lot of research on how things work there. Antarctica is protected wilderness as per the 1991 Antarctic Treaty, which states that the continent is off-limits to commercial exploitation until at least 2041. A signatory nation is not able to have any presence there unless it's conducting scientific research. What I have heard, and a theory that's stated in Nicholas Johnson's book "Big Dead Place" (but which is admittedly speculation), is that there are commercial interests who believe that there are significant oil and gas reserves in Antarctica, but because of course you have to drill through a 2 1/2 mile thick ice sheet to get at them it's not commercially feasible to get at them. However, the Antarctic Treaty positions nations to have infrastructure on the continent such that, IF the treaty is not renewed in 2041 and IF technology has progressed (or oil is expensive enough) such as to make Antarctic drilling economically feasible, the country who's first in line down there will be best positioned to take advantage of it.
Not much of a conspiracy theory I grant you, and even if true it could hardly be the primary motivation for signing the treaty, but I wonder if there might be something to it. Seems like an interest that might occur to negotiators of several countries when they were working out the Antarctic Treaty.
