[Congressional Bills 109th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H. Con. Res. 137 Introduced in House (IH)]






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 Aegean 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 islands and islets and 
        unspecified ``gray areas'' in the Aegean 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 Dodecanese Islands in the 
        Southern Eastern Aegean, and the islands situated at less than three 
        miles from the Asiatic coast, for which no provision to the contrary was 
        contained 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 boundary 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 sea 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 sea 
        boundaries, most notably the Convention Ceding Alaska, done at 
        Washington, District of Columbia, on March 30, 1867, which established 
        the sea 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 sea boundaries established 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 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 Between 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 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
    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 Convention and Protocol 
        Between Italy and Turkey, and the 1947 Paris Treaty of Peace, 
        as well as international 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.
                                 <all>