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Interpretation of the Greco-Turkish Agreement is a court case from the Permanent Court of International Justice (abbreviation PCIJ) under the League of Nations. This advisory opinion was a dispute over the implementation of the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne, which governed the compulsory population exchange between Greece and Turkey.
The treaty mandated the relocation of Greek Orthodox Christians from Turkey to Greece and Muslims from Greece to Turkey, with the aim of reducing ethnic conflicts. However, as populations were uprooted, significant property and financial disputes emerged, particularly regarding the properties left behind by those who were relocated.
To manage these issues, a Mixed Commission for the Exchange of Greek and Turkish Populations was established. The commission was responsible for resolving disputes related to property valuation, financial compensation, and other logistical matters concerning the exchange. Part of the difficulty arose in deciding how to arbitrate unresolved questions, which led to conflicting interpretations between Greece and Turkey on the scope of the commission’s powers and the right to refer certain matters to arbitration.
In 1928, the League of Nations sought a clarification from the PCIJ regarding the authority of the Mixed Commission. The Court was asked to determine whether the commission alone had the power to decide if conditions existed for submitting questions to arbitration, as specified in Article IV of the 1926 Final Protocol, and, if so, whether the right to initiate such referrals belonged solely to the commission.
The PCIJ's ruling affirmed the commission’s exclusive authority to assess and decide on matters eligible for arbitration, emphasizing that only the commission could refer unresolved issues for arbitration. This ruling aimed to clarify jurisdictional boundaries and enable the more effective resolution of property disputes, thus ensuring smoother implementation of the population exchange agreement.
History of the Treaty of Lausanne
editThe Treaty of Lausanne was signed on July 24, 1923, after World War I. It marked the end of the conflict between the Allied Powers and the Ottoman Empire, which had been one of the Central Powers during the war. The treaty recognized the boundaries of modern Turkey and formalized the population exchanges between Greece and Turkey. It replaced the earlier Treaty of Sèvres (1920), which had been more favorable to the Allies but was never ratified by the Turkish National Movement, leading to the Turkish War of Independence. The Treaty of Lausanne played a crucial role in establishing the Republic of Turkey and reshaping the geopolitical landscape in the region following the war.