Book excerpt: The focus of this study is on Dutch Antarctic policy. In order to explain Dutch Antarctic policy from the late 1950s until 1990 and to place it in a broader context, Dutch policy will be compared with the Antarctic policies of Belgium and Germany (Federal Republic of Germany, FRG) in the same period. 6 The comparison offers insights into the functioning of the ATS and into the roles - if any - of the three countries in this international regime in the period under investigation. This adds another central question to this research: How does Dutch Antarctic policy compare with the Belgian and German Antarctic policies in the same period?