[Congressional Record Volume 145, Number 28 (Tuesday, February 23, 1999)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E266]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




INTRODUCTION OF RESOLUTION ON GREEK SOVEREIGNTY OVER THE ISLETS OF IMIA

                                 ______
                                 

                        HON. FRANK PALLONE, JR.

                             of new jersey

                    in the house of representatives

                       Tuesday, February 23, 1999

  Mr. PALLONE. Mr. Speaker, on December 25, 1995 a Turkish bulk carrier 
ran ashore on the islets of Imia, one of two uninhabited islets which 
are part of the Dodecanese islands group in the Aegean Sea. This 
incident nearly escalated into armed conflict between NATO allies 
Turkey and Greece due to Turkey's belligerent claim that the islets, 
which are sovereign Greek territory, belonged to Turkey.
  Hostilities were avoided after the Greek government refused to attack 
a detachment of Turkish commandos who had been dispatched to the islets 
and President Clinton personally intervened to help defuse the crisis.
  Despite Turkey's continued insistence that the islets are Turkish 
territories, the historical record on this issue is clear. The 
Dodecanese islands group was ceded by Turkey to Italy in the Lausanne 
Treaty of 1923. The boundaries delineating the exact sovereignty 
between Turkey and the islands group were finalized in a December 1932 
protocol between Turkey and Italy. That protocol, which was annexed to 
the Convention Between Italy and Turkey for the Delimitation of 
Anatolia and the Island of Castellorizio, placed the islets of Imia 
under the sovereignty of Italy. In the 1947 Paris Treaty of Peace with 
Italy, Italy ceded the Dodecanese islands group to Greece.
  The legal status of the Dodecanese islands group remained 
unchallenged by Turkey until its bulk carrier ran aground in late 1995 
and Ankara began making its unfounded claims in 1996. Today, Turkey 
continues to promote instability in the region by ignoring the 
historical record with its claim of sovereignty over the islets of 
Imia.
  This unfounded claim should not go unnoticed by Congress. To that 
end, today I am introducing a resolution that documents the historical 
record establishing Greek sovereignty over the Dodecanese islands group 
and expresses the sense of the Congress that: the islets of Imia in the 
Aegean sea are sovereign territory of Greece under international law; 
and Turkey should agree to bring this matter before the International 
Court of Justice at The Hague, Netherlands, for a resolution.
  I encourage all Members to join me in reaffirming Greek sovereignty 
over the islets, protecting the rule of international law, and 
advocating a peaceful settlement to this matter