IV 
109TH CONGRESS 
1ST SESSION 
H. CON. RES. 137 
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 21, 2005 
Mr. ANDREWS (for himself, Mr. BILIRAKIS, Mrs. MALONEY, Mr. MCGOVERN, 
and Ms. WATSON) 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 Ae-
gean Sea. 
Whereas the maritime boundary 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 is-
lands and islets and unspecified ‘‘gray areas’’ in the Ae-
gean Sea; 
Whereas in article 12 of Treaty of Peace with Turkey and 
Other Instruments, done at Lausanne, Switzerland, on 
July 24, 1923, the sovereignty of Greece was established 
over the islands of the Eastern Mediterranean, other 
than Imuros, Tenedos and Rabbit Islands, the Dodeca-
•HCON 137 IH 
nese Islands in the Southern Eastern Aegean, and the is-
lands situated at less than three miles from the Asiatic 
coast, for which no provision to the contrary was con-
tained in such Treaty; 
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 
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 bound-
ary between the two countries; 
Whereas a protocol done at Ankara, Turkey, on December 
28, 1932, and annexed to the 1932 Convention memorial-
ized an agreement on a sea boundary between Italy and 
Turkey, which placed the Imia islets under the sov-
ereignty 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;
•HCON 137 IH 
Whereas because the United States is party to treaty regimes 
that establish sea boundaries, most notably the Conven-
tion Ceding Alaska, done at Washington, District of Co-
lumbia, on March 30, 1867, which established the sea 
boundary between Alaska and Russia, the United States 
has an interest in maintaining and perpetuating such re-
gimes as a matter of international law; 
Whereas by resolution dated February 15, 1996, the Euro-
pean Parliament resolved that the sea boundaries estab-
lished 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 Ae-
gean Sea; 
Whereas the Government of Turkey claims Aegean islands 
within Greek sovereignty and continued violations of 
Greek sovereign airspace and territorial waters by the 
military forces of Turkey contravene the 1923 Lausanne 
Treaty of Peace, the 1932 Convention and Protocol Be-
tween Italy and Turkey, and the 1947 Paris Treaty of 
Peace, as well as international law and the Charter of the 
United Nations; 
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 Ae-
gean Sea is located, is a region of vital strategic impor-
tance to the United States; 
Whereas both Greece and Turkey are members of the North 
Atlantic Treaty Organization and allies of the United 
States; and
•HCON 137 IH 
Whereas it is in the interest of the United States and other 
nations to resolve disputes peacefully: Now, therefore, be 
it 
Resolved by the House of Representatives (the Senate 
concurring), That it is the sense of Congress that— 
(1) the maritime boundaries established in the 
1923 Lausanne Treaty of Peace, the 1932 Conven-
tion and Protocol Between Italy and Turkey, and 
the 1947 Paris Treaty of Peace, as well as inter-
national law, under which the Dodecanese islands 
and adjacent islets were ceded by Italy to Greece, 
are the borders between Greece and Turkey in the 
Aegean Sea; and 
(2) any party, including Turkey, objecting to 
these established boundaries should seek redress in 
the International Court of Justice at The Hague. 
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