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. KEN-
NEDY 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 res-
olution; 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 Tur-
key;
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 Italy-
Turkey Convention, the 1932 Italy-Turkey Protocol, the
1947 Paris Peace Treaty, and international law;
•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 be-
tween 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 is-
lets 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 Euro-
pean Parliament resolved that the water boundaries es-
tablished 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;
•HCON 36 IH
Whereas a fundamental principle of international law is that,
once agreed, a boundary shall remain stable and predict-
able;
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 Ae-
gean Sea is located, is a region of vital strategic impor-
tance to the United States: Now, therefore, be it
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate
concurring), That it is the sense of the Congress that—
(1) the islets of Imia in the Aegean Sea are sov-
ereign territory of Greece under international law;
and
(2) Turkey should agree to bring this matter
before the International Court of Justice at The
Hague, Netherlands, for a resolution.
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