II. Convention Relating to the Régime of
the Straits
(Translation)
The British Empire, France, Italy, Japan,
Bulgaria, Greece, Roumania, Russia, the Serb-Croat-Slovene State and Turkey,
being desirous of ensuring in the Straits freedom of transit and navigation
between the Mediterranean Sea and the Black Sea for all nations, in accordance
with the principle laid down in Article 23 of the Treaty of Peace signed this
day.
And considering that the maintenance of that
freedom is necessary to the general peace and the commerce of the world.
Have decided to conclude a Convention to this
effect, and have appointed as their respective Plenipotentiaries:
His Majesty the King of the United Kingdom
of Great Britain and Ireland and of the British Dominions Beyond the Seas,
Emperor of India:
The Right Honourable Sir Horace George
Montagu Rumbold, Baronet, G.C.M.G., High Commissioner at Constantinople;
The President of the French Republic:
Geneva Maurice Pellé, Ambassador of France,
High Commissioner of the Republic in the East, Grand Officer of the National
Order of the Legion of Honour;
His Majesty the King of Italy:
The Honourable Marquis Camillo Garroni,
Senator of the Kingdom, Ambassador of Italy, High Commissioner at
Constantinople, Grand Cross of the Orders of Saints Maurice and Lazarus, and
of the Crown of Italy;
M.Giulio Cesare Montagna, Envoy Extraordinary
and Minister Plenipotentiary at Athens, Commander of the Order of Saints
Maurice and Lazarus, Grand Officer of the Crown of Italy;
His Majesty the Emperor of Japan:
Mr.Kentaro Otchiai, Jusammi, First Class of
the Order of the Rising Sun, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary at
Rome;
His Majesty the King of the Bulgarians:
M.Bogdan Morphof, formerly Minister of
Railways, Posta and Telegraphs;
M.Dimitri Stanciof, Doctor of Law, Envoy
Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary at London, Grand Cross of the Order
of Saint Alexander:
His Majesty the King of the Hellenes:
M.Eleftherios K. Veniselos, formerly
President of the Council of Ministers, Grand Cross of the Order of the Saviour;
M.Demetrios Caclamanos, Minister
Plenipotentiary at London, Commander of the Order of the Saviour;
His Majesty the King of Roumania:
M.Constantine I. Diamandy Minister
Plenipotentiary;
M.Constantine Contzesco, Minister
Plenipotentiary;
Russia:
M.Nicolas Ivanovitch Iordanski;
His Majesty the King of the Serbs, The
Croats and the Slovenes:
Dr.Miloutine Yovanovitch, Envoy Extraordinary
and Minister Plenipotentiary at Berne;
The Government of theGrand National
Assembly of Turkey:
Ysmet Pasha, Minister for Foreign Affairs,
Deputy for Adrianople;
Dr.Riza Nur Bey, Minister for Health and for
Public Assistance, Deputy for Sinope;
Hassan Bey, formerly Minister, Deputy for
Trebizond;
Who, having produced their full powers, found
in good and the form, have agreed as follows:
Article 1
The High Contracting Parties agree to
recognise and declare the principle of freedom of transit and of navigation by
sea and by air in the Strait of the Dardanelles, the Sea of Marmora and the
Bosphorus, hereinafter comprised under the general term of the
"Straits".
Article 2
The transit and navigation of commercial
vessels and aircraft, and of war vessels and aircraft in the Straits in time
of peace and in time of war shall henceforth be regulated by the provisions of
the attached Annex.
ANNEX
Rules for the Passage of Commercial
Vessels and Aircraft, and of War Vessels and Aircraft through the Straits
1.
Merchant Vessels, including Hospital
Ships, Yachts and Fishing Vessels and non-Military Aircraft.
(a) In Time of Peace.
Complete freedom of navigation and passage by
day and by night under any flag and with any kind of cargo, without any
formalities, or tax, or charge whatever (subject, however, to international
sanitary provisions) unless for services directly rendered, such as pilotage,
light, towage or other similar charges, and without prejudice to the rights
exercised in this respect by the services and undertakings now operating under
concessions granted by the Turkish Government.
To facilitate the collection of these dues,
merchant vessels passing the Straits will communicate to stations appointed by
the Turkish Government their name, nationality, tonnage and destination.
Pilotage remains optional
(b)In Time of War, Turkey being Neutral.
Complete freedom of navigation and passage by
day and by night under the same conditions as above. The duties and rights of
Turkey as a neutral Powercannot authorise her to take any measures liable to
interfere with navigation through the Straits, the waters of which, and the
air above which, must remain entirely free in time of war, Turkey being
neutral just as in time of peace.
Pilotage remains optional
(c )In Time of War, Turkey being a
Belligerent
Freedom of navigation for neutral vessels and
neutral non-military aircraft, if the vessel or aircraft in question does not
assist the enemy, particularly by carrying contraband, troops or enemy
nationals. Turkey will have the right to visit and search such vessels and
aircraft, and for this purpose aircraft are to alight on the ground or on the
sea in such areas as are specified and prepared for this purpose by Turkey.
The rights of Turkey to apply to enemy vessels the measures allowed by
international law are not affected.
Turkey will have full power to take such
measures as she may consider necessary to prevent enemy vessels from using the
Straits. These measures, however, are not to be of such a nature as to prevent
the free passage of neutral vessels, and Turkey agrees to provide such vessels
with either the necessary instructions or pilots for the above purpose.
2.
Warships, including Fleet Auxiliaries,
Troopships Aircraft Carriers and Military Aircraft.
(a)In Time of Peace.
Complete freedom of passage by day and by
night under any flag, without any formalities, or tax, or charge whatever, but
subject to the following restrictions as to the total force:
The maximum force which any one Power may
send through the Straits into the Black Sea is not to be greater than that of
the most powerful fleet of the littoral Powers of the Black Sea existing in
that sea at the time of passage; but with the proviso that the Powers reserve
to themselves the right to send into the Black Sea, at all times and under all
circumstances, a force of not more than three ships, of which no individual
ship shall exceed 10,000 tons.
Turkey has no responsibility in regard to the
number of war vessels which pass through the Straits.
In order to enable the above rule to be
observed, the Straits Commission provided for in Article 10 will, on the 1st
January and the 1st July of each year, enquires of each Black Sea
littoral Power the number of each of the following classes of vessel which
such Power possesses in the Black sea; Battle-ships, battle-cruisers
aircraft-carriers, cruisers, destroyers, submarines or other types of vessels
as well as naval aircraft; distinguishing between the ships which are in
active commission and the ships with reduced complements, the ships in reserve
and the ships undergoing repairs or alterations.
The Straits Commission will then inform the
Powers concerned that the strongest naval force in the Black Sea comprises:
Battleships, battle-cruisers aircraft carriers, cruisers, destroyers,
submarines, aircraft and units other types which may exist. The Straits
Commission will also immediately inform the Powers concerned when, owing to
the passage into or out of the Black Sea of any ship of the strongest Black
Sea force, any alteration in that force has taken place.
The naval force that may be sent through the
Straits into the Black Sea will be calculated on the number and type of the
ships of war in active commission only.
(b)In Time of War, Turkey being Neutral.
Complete freedom of passage by day and by
night under any flag, without any formalities, or tax, or charge whatever,
under the same limitations as in paragraph 2(a)
However, these limitations will not be
applicable to any belligerent Power to the prejudice of its belligerent rights
in the Black Sea.
The rights and duties of Turkey as a neutral
Power cannot authorise her to take any measures liable to interfere with
navigation through the Straits, the waters of which, and the air above which,
must remain entirely free in time of war, Turkey being neutral, just as in
time of peace.
Warships and military aircraft of
belligerents will be forbidden to make any capture, to exercise the right of
visit and search, or to carry out any other hostile act in the Straits.
As regards revictualling and carrying out
repairs, war vessels will be subject to the terms of the terms of the
Thirteenth Hague Convention of 1907, dealing with maritime neutrality.
Military aircraft will receive in the Straits
similar treatment to that accorded under the Thirteenth Haugue Convention of
1907 to warships, pending the conclusion of an international Convention
establishing the rules of neutrality for aircraft.
(c )In Time of War, Turkey being
Belligerent
Complete freedom of passage for neutral
warship, without any formalities, or tax, or charge whatever, but under the
same limitations as in paragraph 2 (a).
The measures taken by Turkey to prevent enemy
ships and aircraft from using the Straits are not to be of such a nature as to
prevent the free passage of neutral ships and aircraft, and Turkey agrees to
provide the said ships and aircraft with cither the necessary instructions or
pilots for the above purpose.
Neutral military aircraft will make the
passage of the Straits at their own risk and peril, and will submit to
investigation as to their character. For this purpose aircraft are to alight
on the ground or on the sea in such areas as are specified and prepared for
this purpose by Turkey.
3.
(a)The passage of the Straits by submarines
of Powers at peace with Turkey must be made on the surface.
(b)The officer in command of a foreign naval
force, whether coming from the Mediterranean or the Black Sea, will
communicate, without being compelled to stop, to a signal station at the
entrance to the Dardanelles or the Bosphorus, the number and the names of
vessels under his orders which are entering the Straits.
These signal stations shall be notified from
time to time by Turkey; until such signal stations are notified, the freedom
of passage for foreign war vessels in the Straits shall not thereby be
prejudiced, nor shall their entry into the Straits be for this reason delayed.
(c )The right of military and non-military
aircraft to fly over the Straits, under the conditions laid down in the
present rules, necessitates for aircraft.
(i)Freedom to fly over a strip of territory
of five kilometres wide on each side of the narrow parts of the Straits;
(ii)Liberty, in the event of a forced
landing, to alight on the coast or on the sea in the territorial waters of
Turkey.
4.
Limitation of Time of Transit for
Warships.
In no event shall warships in transit through
the Straits, except in the event of damage or peril of the sea, remain therein
beyond the time which is necessary for them to effect their passage, including
the time of anchorage during the night if necessary for safety of navigation.
5.
Stay in the Ports of the Straits and of
the Black Sea.
(a)Paragraphs 1, 2 and 3 of this Annex apply
to the passage of vessels, warships and aircraft through and over the Straits
and do not affect the right of Turkey to make such regulations as she may
consider necessary regarding the number of men-of-war and military aircraft of
any one Power which may visit Turkish ports or aerodromes at one time, and the
duration of their stay.
(b)Littoral Powers of the Black Sea will also
have a similar right as regards their ports and aerodromes.
(c )The light-vessels which the Powers at
present represented on the European Commission of the Danube maintain as
stationaries at the months of that river as far up as Galatz will be regarded
as additional to the men-of-war referred to in paragraph 2, and may be
replaced in case of need.
6.
Special Provisions relating to Sanitary
Protection.
Warships which have on board cases of plague,
cholera or typhus, or which have had such cases on board during the last seven
days, and warships which have left an infected port within less than five
times 24 hours must pass through the Straits in quarantine and apply by the
means on board such prophylactic measures as are necessary to prevent any
possibility of the Straits being infected.
The same rule shall apply to merchant ships
having a doctor on board and passing straight through the Straits without
calling at a port or breaking bulk.
Merchant ships not having a doctor on board
shall be obliged to comply with the international sanitary regulations before
entering the Straits, even if they are not to call at a port therein.
Warships and merchant vessels calling at one
of the ports in the Straits shall be subject in that port to the international
sanitary regulations applicable in the port in question.
Article 3
With a view to maintaining the Straits free
from any obstacle to free passage and navigation, the provisions contained in
Articles 4 to 9 will be applied to the waters and shores thereof as well as to
the islands situated therein, or in the vicinity.
Article 4
The zones and islands indicated below shall
be demilitarised:
1)Both shores of the Straits of the
Dardanelles and the Bosphorus over the extent of the zones delimited below
(see the attached map)
Dardanelles:
On the north-west, the Gallipoli Peninsula
and the area south-east of a line traced from a point on the Gulf of Xeros 4
kilometres north-east of Bakla-Burnu, reaching the Sea of Marmora at Kumbaghi
and passing south of Kavak (this village excluded);
On the south-east, the area included between
the coast and a line 20 kilometres from the coast, starting from Cape
Eski-Stamboul opposite Tenedos and reaching the Sea of Marmora at a point on
the coast immediately north of Karabigha.
Bosphorus (without prejudice to the special
provisions relating to Constantinople contained in Article 8);
On the east, the area extending up to a line
15 kilometres from the wastern shore of the Bosphorus;
On the west, the area up to a line 15
kilometres from the western shore of the Bosphorus.
2)All the islands in the Sea of Marmora, with
the exception of the island of Emir Ali Adasi.
3)In the Aegean Sea, the islands of
Samothrace, Lemnos, Imbros, Tenedos and Rabbit Islands.
Article 5
A Commission composed of four representatives
appointed respectively by the Governments of France, Great Britain, Italy and
Turkey shall meet within 15 days of the coming into force of the present
Convention to determine on the spot the boundaries of the zone laid down in
Article 4 (1).
The Governments represented on that
Commission with pay the salaries of their respective representatives.
Any general expenses incurred by the
Commission shall be borne in equal shares by the Powers represented thereon.
Article 6
Subject to the provisions of Article 8
concerning Constantinople, there shall exist, in the demilitarised zones and
islands, no fortifications, no permanent artillery organisation, no submarine
engines of war other than submarine vessels, no military aerial organisation,
and no naval base.
No armed forces shall be stationed in the
demilitarised zones and islands except the police and gendarmerie forces
necessary for the maintenance of order; the armament of such forces will be
composed only of revolvers, swords, rifles and four Lewis guns per hundred
men, and will exclude any artillery.
In the territorial waters of the
demilitarised zones and islands, there shall exist no submarine engines of war
other than submarine vessels.
Not withstanding the preceding paragraphs
Turkey will retain the right to transport her armed forces through the
denfilitarised zones and islands of Turkish territory, as well as through
their territorial waters, where the Turkish fleet will have the right to
anchor.
Moreover, in so far as the Straits are
concerned, the Turkish Government shall have the right to observe by means of
aeroplanes or balloons both the surface and the bottom of the sea. Turkish
aeroplanes will always be able to fly over the waters of the Straits and the
demilitarised zones of Turkish territory, and will have full freedom to alight
therein, either on land or on sea.
In the demilitarised zones and islands and in
their territorial waters, Turkey and Greece shall similarly be entitled to
effect such outside these zones and islands of the men recruited therein.
Turkey and Greece shall have the right to
organise in the said zones and islands in their respective territories any
system of observation and communication, both telegraphic, telephonic and
visual. Greece shall be entitled to send her fleet into the territorial waters
of the demilitarised Greek islands, but may not use these waters as a base of
operations against Turkey nor for any military or naval concentration for this
purpose.
Article 7
No submarine engines of war other than
submarine vessels shall be installed in the waters of the Sea of Marmora.
The Turkish Government shall not install any
permanent battery or torpedo tubes, capable of interfering with the passage of
the Straits, in the coastal zone of the European shore of the Sea of Marmora
or in the coastal zone on the Anatolian shore situated to the cast of the
demilitarised zone of the Bosphorus as far as Darije.
Article 8
At Constantinople, including for this purpose
Stamboul, Pera, Galata, Seutari, as well as Princes islands, and in the
immediate neighbourhood of Constantinople, there may be maintained for the
requirements of the capital, a garrison with a maximum strength of 12,000 men.
An arsenal and naval base may also be maintained at Constantinople.
Article 9
If, in case of war, Turkey, or Greece, in
pursuance of their belligerent rights, should modify in any way the provisions
of demilitarisation prescribed above, they will be bound to re-establish as
soon as pace is concluded the regime laid down in the present Convention.
Article 10
There shall be constituted at Constantinople
an International Commission composed in accordance with Article 12 and called
the "Straits Commission."
Article 11
The Commission will exercise its functions
over the waters of the Straits.
Article 12
The Commission shall be composed of a
representative of Turkey, who shall be President, and representatives of
France, Great Britain, Italy, Japan, Bulgaria, Greece, Roumania, Russia, and
the Serb-Croat-Slovene State, in so far as these Powers are signatories of the
present Convention, each of these Powers being entitled to representation as
from its ratification of the said Convention.
The United States of America, in the event of
their acceding to the present Convention, will also be entitled to have one
representative on the Commission.
Under the same conditions any independent
littoral States of the Black Sea which are not mentioned in the first
paragraph of the present Article will possess thesame right.
Article 13
The Governments represented on the Commission
will pay the salaries of their representatives. Any incidental expenditure
incurred by the Commission will be borne by the said Governments in the
proportion laid down for the division of the expenses of the League of
Nations.
Article 14
It will be the duty of the Commission to see
that the provisions relating to the passage of warships and military aircraft
are carried out; these provisions are laid down in paragraphs 2, 3 and 4 of
the Annex to Article 2.
Article 15
The Straits Commission will carry out its
functions under the auspices of the League of Nations, and will address to the
League and annual report giving an account of its activities, and furnishing
all information which may be useful in the interests of commerce and
navigation; with this object in view the Commission will place itself in touch
with the departments of the Turkish Government dealing with navigation through
the Straits.
Article 16
It will be the duty of the Commission to
prescribe such regulations as may be necessary for the accomplishment of its
task.
Article 17
The terms of the present Convention will not
infringe the right of Turkey to move her fleet freely in Turkish waters.
Article 18
The High Contracting Parties, desiring to
secure that the demilitarisation of the Straits and of the contiguous zones
shall not constitute an unjustifiable danger to the military security of
Turkey, and that no act of war should imperil the freedom of the Straits or
the safety of the demilitarised zones, agree as follows:
Should the freedom of navigation of the
Straits or the security of the demilitarised zones be imperilled by a
violation of the provisions relating to freedom of passage, or by a surprise
attack or some act of war or threat of war, the High Contracting Parties, ad
in any case France, Great Britain, Italy and Japan, acting in conjunction,
will meet such violation, attack, or other act of war or threat of war, by all
the means that the Council of the League of Nations may decide for this
purpose.
So soon as the circumstance which may have
necessitated the action provided for in the preceding paragraph shall have
ended, the regime of the Straits as laid down by the terms of the present
Convention shall again be strictly applied.
The present provision, which forms an
integral part of those relating to the demilitarisation and to the freedom of
the Straits, does not prejudice the rights and obligations of the High
Contracting Parties under the Covenant of the League of Nations.
Article 19
The High Contracting Parties will use every
possible endeavour to induce non-signatory Power to accede to the present
Convention.
This adherence will be notified through the
diplomatic channel to the Government of the French Republic, and by that
Government to all signatory or adhering States. The adherence will take effect
as from the date of notification to the French Government.
Article 20
The present Convention shall be ratified. The
ratification's shall be deposited at Paris as soon as possible.
The Convention will come into force in the
same way as the Treaty of Peace signed this day. In so far as concerns those
Powers who are not signatories of this Treaty and who at that date shall not
yet have ratified the present Convention, this Convention will come into force
as from the date on which they deposit their respective ratification's, which
deposit shall be notified to the other Contracting Powers by the French
Government.
In faith whereof the above-named
Plenipotentiaries have signed the present Convention.
Done at Lausanne the 24th July,
1923, in a single copy which will remain deposited in the archives of the
Government of the French Republic, and of which authenticated copies will be
transmitted to each of the Contracting Powers.
(L.S.) Horoce Rumbold.
(L.S.) Pellé
(L.S.) Garroni
(L.S.) G.C. Montagna
(L.S.) K. Otchiai
(L.S.) B.Morphoff
(L.S.) Stancioff
(L.S.) E.K. Venisélos
(L.S.) D. Caclamanos
(L.S.) Const. Diamandy
(L.S.) Const. Contzeso
( ) ………………..
( ) ………………..
(L.S.) M. Ismet
(L.S.) Dr. Ryza Nur
(L.S.) Hassan
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