IV
107TH CONGRESS
2D SESSION
H. CON. RES. 327
Commending the Republic of Turkey and the State of Israel for the continued
strengthening of their political, economic, cultural, and strategic partner-
ship and for their actions in support of the war on terrorism.
IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
FEBRUARY 12, 2002
Mr. WEXLER (for himself, Mr. CRENSHAW, Mr. MORAN of Virginia, and Mr.
FOLEY) submitted the following concurrent resolution; which was referred
to the Committee on International Relations
CONCURRENT RESOLUTION
Commending the Republic of Turkey and the State of Israel
for the continued strengthening of their political, eco-
nomic, cultural, and strategic partnership and for their
actions in support of the war on terrorism.
Whereas the Republic of Turkey has had diplomatic relations
with the State of Israel since 1949;
Whereas until 1979 the Republic of Turkey was the only
Muslim country to recognize the State of Israel;
Whereas in December 1991 the Republic of Turkey began
ambassadorial relations with the State of Israel;
Whereas the Republic of Turkey has made important con-
tributions to the Middle East peace process and has
served as an honest and fair peace broker;
•HCON 327 IH
Whereas the relationship between the Republic of Turkey and
the State of Israel has political, economic, cultural, and
strategic dimensions;
Whereas the Turkish and Israeli people have enjoyed a wide
range of contacts;
Whereas the Republic of Turkey and the State of Israel
began holding annual humanitarian search and rescue ex-
ercises with the United States in 1998, with the most re-
cent of such exercises occurring in January 2001;
Whereas nonmilitary mutual trade between the Republic of
Turkey and the State of Israel has grown by more than
800 percent since a free trade agreement was signed in
1996;
Whereas total trade volume between the Republic of Turkey
and the State of Israel exceeded $1,000,000,000 in 2000,
with each country emerging as the other’s leading export
market in the Middle East;
Whereas Turkish and Israeli companies are seeking opportu-
nities to cooperate in joint ventures involving textiles, ag-
riculture, energy, and construction in the newly inde-
pendent states of Central Asia, particularly in Azer-
baijan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan;
Whereas the Republic of Turkey has constructed a major
water purification and treatment plant and has offered to
export a considerable volume of water to the State of
Israel;
Whereas Turkish and Israeli universities are engaged in ro-
bust academic exchanges, including endowed chairs, vis-
iting professors and students, and frequent joint semi-
nars;
•HCON 327 IH
Whereas more than 250,000 Israeli tourists have visited the
Republic of Turkey annually since the mid–1990s and
the number of Turkish visitors to the State of Israel has
been steadily increasing;
Whereas the Turkish and Israeli people have provided crucial
domestic support for the development of close cooperation
between the governments of the 2 countries;
Whereas the partnership between the Republic of Turkey and
the State of Israel has been strengthened by successive
democratic governments in both countries;
Whereas security cooperation between the Republic of Turkey
and the State of Israel has improved dramatically in re-
cent years;
Whereas the Republic of Turkey, the State of Israel, and the
United States conducted their first trilateral air exercise
in June 2001;
Whereas the trilateral air exercise was staged in the Republic
of Turkey and was the first time the Israeli Air Force
had participated in military exercises in foreign air space;
Whereas the bilateral relationship between the Republic of
Turkey and the State of Israel represents a mature and
stable partnership which has already had a profound im-
pact on the political, economic, cultural, and strategic en-
vironment in the Eastern Mediterranean, Middle East,
and Central Asia;
Whereas the Republic of Turkey and the State of Israel have
strongly supported the war on terrorism;
Whereas the Republic of Turkey and the State of Israel have
suffered greatly from terrorism during the last half cen-
tury;
•HCON 327 IH
Whereas the Republic of Turkey was the first Muslim coun-
try to authorize the use of troops to support Operation
Enduring Freedom;
Whereas the Republic of Turkey and the State of Israel have
pledged to assist the United States and the international
community in rebuilding Afghanistan;
Whereas the Republic of Turkey has authorized the deploy-
ment of peacekeepers to Afghanistan who will be respon-
sible for forming and training the first Afghani national
security forces; and
Whereas the Republic of Turkey and the State of Israel have
had a political, economic, cultural, and strategic partner-
ship with the United States for the last half century:
Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate
concurring), That Congress—
(1) commends the Republic of Turkey and the
State of Israel for the continued strengthening of
their political, economic, cultural, and strategic part-
nership;
(2) recognizes the importance of the cooperative
relationship between the Republic of Turkey and the
State of Israel as a positive example of the kind of
ties between countries of differing cultures and reli-
gions without which a just and lasting peace in the
Middle East will never be achieved;
(3) calls upon the other countries in the Middle
East to follow the example set by the Republic of
•HCON 327 IH
Turkey and the State of Israel in the interest of pro-
moting regional cooperation and peace;
(4) commends the Republic of Turkey and the
State of Israel for their actions in support of the
war on terrorism;
(5) encourages increased political, economic,
cultural, and military cooperation between the
United States, the Republic of Turkey, and the
State of Israel; and
(6) reaffirms the political, economic, cultural,
and strategic partnership between the United States,
the Republic of Turkey, and the State of Israel.
Æ