IV

106TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. CON. RES. 36

Expressing the sense of the Congress regarding Turkey’s claim of sovereignty

to the islets in the Aegean Sea called Imia by Greece and Kardak

by Turkey.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

FEBRUARY 23, 1999

Mr. PALLONE (for himself, Mrs. MALONEY of New York, Mr. BILIRAKIS, Ms.

ROS-LEHTINEN, Mr. MCNULTY, Mr. SHERMAN, Mrs. KELLY, Mr. KENNEDY of Rhode Island, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mr. CROWLEY, Mr. HINCHEY,

Mr. BLAGOJEVICH, Mr. EVANS, Mr. FORBES, Mr. DIAZ-BALART, Mr.

ACKERMAN, and Mr. MENENDEZ) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred to the Committee on International Relations

CONCURRENT RESOLUTION

Expressing the sense of the Congress regarding Turkey’s

claim of sovereignty to the islets in the Aegean Sea

called Imia by Greece and Kardak by Turkey.

Whereas Turkey is claiming sovereignty to the islets in the

Aegean Sea called Imia by Greece and Kardak by Turkey;

Whereas Greece asserts that as the successor state to Italy

of sovereignty over the Dodecanese islands in the Aegean

Sea, the islets of Imia are sovereign Greek territory

under the Treaty of Lausanne of 1923, the 1932 ItalyTurkey Convention, the 1932 Italy-Turkey Protocol, the

1947 Paris Peace Treaty, and international law;
2

•HCON 36 IH

Whereas the islets are dependents of the Island of Calimnos,

an island in the Dodecanese region of the Aegean Sea;

Whereas in Article 15 of the Treaty of Peace with Turkey,

and Other Instruments, signed at Lausanne on July 24,

1923, Turkey renounced in favor of Italy all right, title,

and interest of Turkey in the 12 enumerated islands in

the Dodecanese region that were occupied at the time of

the treaty by Italy, including the Island of Calimnos, and

the islets dependent on such islands;

Whereas the Convention Between Italy and Turkey for the

Delimitation of the Territorial Waters Between the

Coasts of Anatolia and the Island of Castellorizio, signed

at Ankara on January 4, 1932, established the rights of

Italy and Turkey in coastal islands, waters, and rocks in

the Aegean Sea and delimited a maritime frontier between the two countries;

Whereas a protocol dated December 28, 1932, annexed to

that Convention memorialized an agreement on a water

boundary between Italy and Turkey which placed the islets of Imia under the sovereignty of Italy;

Whereas in Article 14 of the 1947 Paris Treaty of Peace with

Italy, Italy ceded to Greece the Dodecanese Islands under

Italy’s control, including the Island of Calimnos and the

adjacent islets of Imia;

Whereas by resolution dated February 15, 1996, the European Parliament resolved that the water boundaries established in the Treaty of Lausanne of 1923 and the

1932 Convention Between Italy and Turkey, including

the protocol annexed to such Convention, are the borders

between Greece and Turkey;
3

•HCON 36 IH

Whereas a fundamental principle of international law is that,

once agreed, a boundary shall remain stable and predictable;

Whereas both Greece and Turkey are members of the North

Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) and allies of the

United States;

Whereas it is in the interest of the United States and other

nations to have disputes resolved peacefully; and

Whereas the Eastern Mediterranean region, in which the Aegean Sea is located, is a region of vital strategic importance to the United States: Now, therefore, be it

1 Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate

2 concurring), That it is the sense of the Congress that—

3 (1) the islets of Imia in the Aegean Sea are sov4 ereign territory of Greece under international law;

5 and

6 (2) Turkey should agree to bring this matter

7 before the International Court of Justice at The

8 Hague, Netherlands, for a resolution.

Æ