Statement On Confidence Building Measures Unofficial Translation June 4,1998 Agreement Reached by Turkey and Greece Regarding the Confidence-Building Measures in the Aegean June 5, 1998 The Meeting of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of Countries of South Eastern Europe Opening Statement by Mr. İsmail Cem, Foreign Minister of the Republic of Turkey 8-9 June, 1998 Declaration on the Situation in Kosovo June 9, 1998 Final Meeting of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of South East European Countries Chairman´s Summary on the Situation in Kosovo June 9,1998 Final Meeting of the Ministers of; Foreign Affairs of South East European Countries İstanbul Declaration On Good-Neighbourly Relations, Stability, Security and Cooperation in South Eastern European Countries 09 June 1998 Statement By The Ministry Of Foreign Affairs Of The Republic Of Turkey Concerning UN Security Council Resolutions No:1178 And 1179 (1998) June 30, 1998
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Statement On Confidence Building Measures Unofficial Translation June 4,1998

Solana has proposed to Turkey and Greece to make a statement reflecting a consensus for the constitution of a first step regarding the Confidence Building Measures at the margins of the NATO Ministerial Meeting held in Luxemburg, on 28-29 May 1998. Turkey has accepted Secretary General's proposal in advance without requesting any change on it. Greece, however, has informed the Secretary General about her consensus on 2 June 1998.

NATO Secretary General's proposals foresee the following:

  • Turkey and Greece have informed the NATO Secretary General of their intention to implement fully the Agreements reached in 1988 between the then Foreign Ministers Yılmaz and Papoulias.
  • The two sides have also declared their willingness to continue their talks with the Secretary General in order to clarify, strengthen and complement the set of Confidence Building Measures which the 1988 Agreements provide for and which constitute a framework of agreed rules of behavior regarding national military activities in the high seas and international airspace aimed at reducing tension and avoiding dangerous incidents.
  • In the 1988 Memorandum of Understanding, both countries have actually recognized the obligation to respect the sovereignty and the territorial integrity of each other and their rights to use the high seas and international airspace of the Aegean. This statement is a manifestation of the political will of the two Governments to continue to respect these principles and to carry out in good faith the range of Confidence Building Measures that have been agreed as well as those that may further be agreed in the talks between the Secretary General and the two countries.

From the very beginning, Turkey has defended the Confidence Building Measures with a view to reduce the tension and to consolidate peace in the Aegean, and supported the initiatives of the NATO Secretary General in this respect.

Turkey believes in the necessity of solving the problems between Turkey and Greece in the Aegean in a just and lasting manner. In this respect, on 12 February 1998 and 11 March 1998 respectively, Turkey has made a peace initiative to Greece composed of five proposals. The proposal of the NATO Secretary General regarding the full implementation of the Confidence Building Measures is actually one of these five proposals. Besides, the Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs has invited his Greek counterpart to Turkey.

However, Greece has not accepted these proposals including the invitation of the Turkish Minister of Foreign Affairs which envisages the goal of finding peaceful means of settlement to all problems between Turkey and Greece.

With the acceptance of the NATO Secretary General's proposal, one of the proposals initiated by Turkey on 12 February 1998 regarding the full implementation of the Confidence Building Measures has been realized. Turkey is looking forward to hearing from Greece concerning the acceptance of other proposals initiated by Turkey as soon as possible.

With this statement, Turkey expects that, by means of a political will on both sides to implement the provisions of the 1988 Memoranda of Understanding as a whole, the incidents of harassement and interception in the international airspace and high seas of the Aegean would be eliminated. Thus, the military exercises which are planned to be conducted in the following days constitute an opportunity to observe to what extent the parties will fulfil the obligations stemming from the Secretary General's proposal.

In case Turkey and Greece could implement these measures as a whole which actually originate from the 1988 Memoranda of Understanding, it would be expected that the positive environment of confidence, as a result of these measures, could contribute to the process of peaceful settlement of all the existing problems between the two countries in a constructive manner.