IV

107TH CONGRESS

1ST SESSION H. CON. RES. 97

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

over islands and islets in the Aegean Sea.

IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

APRIL 4, 2001

Mr. ANDREWS (for himself, Mr. BILIRAKIS, Mr. MCGOVERN, Mrs. MORELLA,

Ms. LEE, Mr. CAPUANO, Mr. BLAGOJEVICH, Mrs. MALONEY of New

York, Mr. MCNULTY, Mr. ACKERMAN, and Mr. KNOLLENBERG) 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

claims of sovereignty over islands and islets in the Aegean Sea.

Whereas the maritime borders between Greece and Turkey in

the Aegean Sea have been delimited in international law

as having been agreed, established, and settled;

Whereas Turkey is claiming sovereignty over numerous islands and islets and unspecified ‘‘gray areas’’ in the Aegean Sea;

Whereas in article 15 of the Treaty of Peace with Turkey

and Other Instruments, done at Lausanne, Switzerland,

on July 24, 1923, Turkey renounced, in favor of Italy,

all right, title, and interest in the 12 enumerated islands
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in the Dodecanese region that were occupied by Italy at

the time of the Treaty, 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 Castellorizo, done at

Ankara, Turkey, 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 done at Ankara, Turkey, on December

28, 1932, and annexed to the 1932 Convention memorialized an agreement on a water boundary between Italy

and Turkey, which placed the Imia islets 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 the United States is a signatory to the 1947 Paris

Treaty of Peace and all articles therein are a part of the

law of the United States;

Whereas because the United States is party to treaty regimes

that establish water boundaries, most notably the Convention Ceding Alaska, done at Washington, District of

Columbia, on March 30, 1867, which established the

water boundary between Alaska and Russia, the United

States has an interest in maintaining and perpetuating

such regimes as a matter of international law;

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

1932 Convention and Protocol Between Italy and Turkey

are the borders between Greece and Turkey in the Aegean Sea;

Whereas Turkish Government claims on Aegean islands within Greek sovereign territory contravene these treaties,

convention, and protocol;

Whereas a fundamental principle of international law is that,

once agreed, a boundary remains stable and predictable;

Whereas the eastern Mediterranean region, in which the Aegean Sea is located, is a region of vital strategic importance to the United States;

Whereas both Greece and Turkey are members of the North

Atlantic Treaty Organization and allies of the United

States; and

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

nations to resolve disputes peacefully: 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 water boundaries established in the

4 1923 Lausanne Treaty of Peace, the 1932 Conven5 tion and Protocol Between Italy and Turkey, and

6 the 1947 Paris Treaty of Peace, under which the

7 Dodecanese islands and adjacent islets were ceded

8 by Italy to Greece, are the borders between Greece

9 and Turkey in the Aegean Sea; and
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1 (2) any party, including Turkey, objecting to

2 these established boundaries should seek redress in

3 the International Court of Justice at The Hague.

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