Editing Terra nullius (section)

== Current claims of ''terra nullius'' ==
[[File:Egypt Sudan claims.svg|thumb|Simplified map showing Egypt's territory (yellow), the Sudan's territory (blue), the disputed [[Halaib Triangle]] (light green) and [[Wadi Halfa Salient]] (dark green), and the unclaimed [[Bir Tawil]] (white).]]

There are three current instances where land is sometimes claimed to be ''terra nullius'': [[Bir Tawil]] bordering [[Egypt]] and the [[Sudan]], [[Croatia–Serbia border dispute|four small areas]] along the [[Croatia]]–[[Serbia]] border, and [[Marie Byrd Land]] in [[Antarctica]].

=== Bir Tawil ===
{{Main|Bir Tawil}}
{{Further|Egypt–Sudan border}}

Between [[Egypt]] and the [[Sudan]] is the {{convert|2,060|km2|abbr=on}} landlocked territory of [[Bir Tawil]], which was created by a discrepancy between borders drawn in 1899 and 1902. One border placed Bir Tawil under the Sudan's control and the [[Halaib Triangle]] under Egypt's; the other border did the reverse. Each country asserts the border that would give it the much larger Halaib Triangle, to the east, which is adjacent to the [[Red Sea]], with the side effect that Bir Tawil is unclaimed by either country (each claims the other owns it). Bir Tawil has no settled population, but the land is used by [[Bedouin]]s who roam the area.{{efn|
name=news-Heaton's-2014-BirTawil-claim|
There is some disagreement of whether Bir Tawil is ''terra nullius'' or not. For example, see the news and analysis of Jeremiah Heaton's 2014 [[flag-planting]] in Bir Tawil, in an effort to make his daughter, Emily, a "princess" at
''Wash. Post'',<ref name=Najarro-2014-07-12-WashPost>{{cite news |first=Ileana |last=Najarro |date=12 July 2014 |title=V{{grey|[irgini]}}a man plants flag, claims African country, calling it 'Kingdom of North Sudan' |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |place=Washington, DC |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/va-man-plants-flag-claims-african-country-calling-it-kingdom-of-north-sudan/2014/07/12/abfbcef2-09fc-11e4-8a6a-19355c7e870a_story.html |access-date=2021-08-21 }}</ref> ''Opinio Juris'',<ref name=Borgen-2014-07-16-be-king>{{cite news |first=Chris |last=Borgen |date=2014-07-16 |title=The man who would be king, daddy's little princess, and their territorial claim |website=Opinio Juris (opiniojuris.org) |url=http://opiniojuris.org/2014/07/16/man-king-daddys-little-princess-territorial-claim/ |access-date=2021-08-21 }}</ref> and ''KDVR'' Denver.<ref name=Holden-2014-07-17>{{cite news |first=Will C. |last=Holden |date=17 July 2014 |title=Man lays claim to African land to make daughter real life 'princess' |website=[[KDVR]] kdvr.com |place=Denver, CO |url=http://kdvr.com/2014/07/17/man-lays-claim-to-african-land-to-make-daughter-real-life-princess/ |access-date=30 March 2018 }}</ref>}}

=== Gornja Siga and other pockets ===
{{Main|Croatia–Serbia border dispute}}

[[File:Croatia Serbia border Backa Baranja.svg|left|thumb|upright=1.15|The Croatia–Serbia border dispute in the [[Bačka]] and [[Baranya (region)|Baranja]] area. The Croatian claim corresponds to the red line, while the Serbian claim corresponds to the course of the [[Danube]].{{legend|#ffff00|Under Serbian control, claimed by Croatia}}{{legend|#00ff00|Under ''[[de facto]]'' Croatian control, although not claimed by either Croatia or Serbia}}]]

[[Croatia]] and [[Serbia]] dispute several small areas on the east bank of the [[Danube]]. However, [[Croatia–Serbia border dispute|four pockets on the western river bank]], of which Gornja Siga is the largest, are not claimed by either country. Serbia makes no claims on the land while Croatia states that the land belongs to Serbia.<ref name=Bartlett-2016-05-24-crypto-libtns>{{cite news |last=Bartlett |first=Jamie |date=24 May 2016 |title=The crypto-libertarians using technology to undermine the nation-state |newspaper=[[The Daily Telegraph|The Telegraph]] |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/05/24/the-crypto-libertarians-using-technology-to-undermine-the-nation/ |archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220112/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/05/24/the-crypto-libertarians-using-technology-to-undermine-the-nation/ |archive-date=12 January 2022 |url-access=subscription |url-status=live
}}{{cbignore}}</ref> Croatia states that the disputed area is not ''terra nullius'' and they are negotiating with Serbia to settle the border.<ref>{{cite press release |date=6 July 2015 |title=On Virtual Narratives at Croatia's Borders |url=https://mvep.gov.hr/nachrichten-91528/on-virtual-narratives-at-croatia-s-borders-160587/160587 |work=Hungarian Embassy of the Republic of Croatia |publisher=[[Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs (Croatia)]]}}</ref>

=== Marie Byrd Land ===
{{Main|Marie Byrd Land}}
{{See also|Territorial claims in Antarctica}}

[[File:Marie Byrd Land in Antarctica.svg|thumb|[[Marie Byrd Land]]|alt=marie]]

While several countries made [[territorial claims in Antarctica|claims to parts of Antarctica]] in the first half of the 20th century, the remainder, including most of [[Marie Byrd Land]] (the portion east from [[150th meridian west|150°W]] to [[90th meridian west|90°W]]), has not been claimed by any sovereign state. Signatories to the [[Antarctic Treaty System|Antarctic Treaty]] of 1959 agreed not to make such claims, except the [[Soviet Union]] and the [[United States]], who reserved the right to make a claim in the future.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Dodds |first1=Klaus |title=Governing Antarctica: Contemporary Challenges and the Enduring Legacy of the 1959 Antarctic Treaty |journal=Global Policy |date=2010 |volume=1 |issue=1 |pages= |url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/j.1758-5899.2009.00006.x |access-date=30 May 2025 |at=Historical Context |location=Wiley Online Library}}</ref>

An undefined area from [[20th meridian west|20°W]] to [[45th meridian east|45°E]] was historically considered potentially unclaimed; the Norwegian claim in [[Queen Maud Land]] was interpreted as covering the coastal regions, but not continuing all the way to the South Pole. In 2015, the claim was extended to reach as far as 90°S.<ref>{{cite news |last=Rapp|first=Ole Magnus |title = Norge utvider Dronning Maud Land helt frem til Sydpolen |journal=Aftenposten |url = https://www.aftenposten.no/norge/i/dw1q/norge-utvider-dronning-maud-land-helt-frem-til-sydpolen |access-date=22 September 2015 |date=21 September 2015 |location=Oslo, Norway |language=no |quote = …formålet med anneksjonen var å legge under seg det landet som til nå ligger herreløst og som ingen andre enn nordmenn har kartlagt og gransket. Norske myndigheter har derfor ikke motsatt seg at noen tolker det norske kravet slik at det går helt opp til og inkluderer polpunktet.}}</ref>

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