A JOB FOR JOE BIDEN: A TURKISH-GREEK BOUNDARY DEAL

Hurriye
Nov 20 2008
Turkey

We have a nominee for an early bit of Turkish business for the incoming
administration of Barack Obama and his No. 2, the world-savvy Joseph
Biden.

No, not Biden’s old screwball idea to divide Iraq into
conveniently-sized ethnic "statelets." And no, not that hardy
perennial, the "genocide resolution" that could only derail the new
thaw in Turkish-Armenian relations. Biden should move on the "Law of
the Sea," a rather weighty set of rules to set maritime boundaries
produced by the United Nations nearly 40 years ago and yet to be
ratified by either the United States or Turkey.

Maritime rules are complex. They are particularly complex when the
issue is an archipelago such as the sets of islands governed by the
Philippines, Indonesia or Greece. Just where the boundary is — or
should be — is an issue that has brought Turkey and Greece close
to war repeatedly. Thankfully, cool heads have prevailed in recent
years and we are sure this will continue.

But a Norwegian ship prospecting for oil under Turkish contract
near the Greek island of Meis has, in recent days, again triggered
angry diplomatic missives between the two countries. Let us be clear
about what is involved. Meis is a pleasant little island. A good
swimmer can get there from the Turkish town of KaÅ~_ in about 45
minutes. By boat it takes five. The islanders and KaÅ~_ townsfolk
all know one another. The lack of a customs facility, for example,
does not prevent most of the island’s 200-odd souls from making their
way every Thursday to the open air market in KaÅ~_. Technically it
is illegal but nobody seems to mind. For the people of Meis and KaÅ~_
have been trading for centuries.

It is long past time that Turkey and Greece hammer out reasonable
rules. The best forum for this would be the arbitration mechanism of
the United Nations as outlined in the Law of the Sea. It has worked
in recent years for Barbados and Trinidad as it has for Suriname
and Guyana. Except Turkey does not recognize the authority of this
body. And why should Turkey, when the nation with the world’s seventh
longest coastline still shuns the deal?

This is where Biden comes in. As chairman of the Senate Foreign
Relations Committee, Biden last year promised he would move this
document through his committee and finally get it ratified by the full
Senate. An election campaign got in the way. But now, he is soon to
be vice president, a job he was tapped for because of international
expertise. This is an even better post to finally wrap up this bit
of unfinished business. While at it, Biden could also demonstrate
the Obama Administration’s leadership in our part of the world and
help resolve one of the last remaining antagonisms between Greece
and Turkey.

–Boundary_(ID_Bxnu9tUzCEFgA6jF88ebew)–