Terra Nullius: where are the no-man's lands remaining on our planet (5 photos)

It would seem that every piece of land on the planet has already been divided and belongs to one of the countries. But in fact, there are no-man's land areas left with which nothing is clear.





So, almost every square kilometer of land belongs to someone, with the exception of a few places that you will now learn about. And no, it’s not just Antarctica with its useless ice. There is very little space left on our planet that is not claimed by humans. These lands are called Terra Nullius, or "no man's land."

The number of territories still considered Terra Nullius is constantly decreasing. The remaining areas of "free" land are either extremely remote and practically inaccessible, or are embroiled in complex land disputes that have deprived them of their rightful owners. There are only three areas left on Earth that are considered Terra Nullius.

Mary Byrd Land



Mary Byrd is the only part of Antarctica that remains unclaimed by major nations. It is also the most significant piece of no man's land in the world. Its area is 1,610,000 square kilometers. The reason Mary Byrd Land remains without an owner is because it is extremely inaccessible. This place is extremely cold and extremely remote from everything else on Earth. It is almost impossible to reach it by ship, and even more difficult by land.

There is nothing preventing future claims to be made on this site. But unlike other areas on this list, Mary Baird is not involved in territorial disputes. But there is a high probability that this land will attract great interest in the future, with the development of technologies sufficient to develop it.

Bir Tawil





Bir Tawil is a 2,060 square kilometer stretch of uninhabited land between Egypt and Sudan. In 1899, the political border between Egypt and Sudan was established. In 1902, a second, administrative border was established. These two boundaries are different from each other.

Egypt claims the original 1899 border is legal and it gives them rights to the nearby Hala'ib Triangle, but not Bir Tawil. Sudan argues that the later administrative demarcation is legal. They claim ownership of the Halaib Triangle and renounce their claims to Bir Tawil.

As a result, neither Egypt nor Sudan claims 2,060 square kilometers on their border, so it is considered Terra Nullius. Both countries want the much more valuable Hala'ib Triangle, which is linked to original border agreements rather than empty, uninhabited lands.

Liberland



Liberland is an area near the Danube River that is not claimed by two neighboring countries, Serbia and Croatia. After the collapse of Yugoslavia, the two countries could not agree on the exact location of the border and are still arguing about it.

Serbia claims that the border runs along the center of the river. Croatia says the old borders, based on 19th-century maps of the river, are legal. However, the course and path of the river changed, eventually leading to a land dispute.

Serbia and Croatia gave up their parts of the land in the hope of taking other areas. This made large sections of the banks of the Danube and the islands on the river Terra Nullius.

Due to the absence of the owner of the land, a virtual state called Liberland claimed rights to this territory, but it is not recognized by anyone.

Total land area



The total area of ​​Terra Nullius remaining in the world is approximately 1,607,859 square kilometers. This makes it approximately the same area as Iran. Without taking into account icy Antarctica, this figure is much smaller - about 2072 square kilometers.

If Terra Nullius were a country, it would be larger than Mongolia, and the 18th largest country in the world. But everything is changing quickly and no one knows whether these lands will lose their free status, or maybe new ones will appear.