Legal regime of Antarctica with a special focus on the protection of the environment and the position of the Czech Republic

The objective of the thesis is to describe the legal regime of the Antarctic specifically in relation to the protection of its environment. The introductory chapters are devoted to brief description of the natural conditions of the Antarctic and the history of its exploration. In relation with the discovery voyages there are also mentioned the first territorial claims of the states and the legal foundations on which these claims were made. The author also deals with the basic legal document in relation to this continent, the Antarctic Treaty, mainly with its main principles as the demilitarization, prohibition of appropriation and the recognition of previous claims. Under the Antarctic Treaty several categories of the Parties to the Treaty can be distinguished which is an un-common situation. The existence of the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting which is related to this situation is also being discussed. This Consultative Meeting further develops the principles of the Antarctic Treaty and issues Measures, Decisions and Resolutions. This thesis focuses on the analysis of the protection of the environment of the Antarctic. The topic has been divided into separate components of the environment and these are dealt with in individual chapters of the thesis where the steady development and the introduction..