The Treaty of Sevres
This treaty was signed with Turkey on August 10, 1920, although it actually came into force on August 6, 1924. This treaty was also modelled on the Treaty of Versailles.
According to the terms of the Treaty of Sevres, Asia Minor, Trace, Adrinople and Gallipole were given to Greece, Syria was delivered to France and Palestine and Mesopotamia were given to England. The King of Hejjaj was declared independent and the state of Turkey was restricted within the Asia Minor.
The Turkish army was reduced to 50,000 and she surrendered all her air force to the Allies. The Turkish ports of Constantinople, Alexandria etc. were placed under international control. Although Turkey was charged with war-guilt, the reparations claims were waived in her case.
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But these terms of the treaty could not be put into force due to the successful opposition staged by the nationalist party under Mustafa Kamal Pasha. In the meanwhile a war broke out between Turkey and Greece over Smyrna. On November 1, 1922 the Sultnate was abolished and on November 20, 1922 negotiations for peace between Nationalist Turkey and Allies were opened at Lausanne.
The Conference at Lausanne lasted till July 24, 1923 and was attended by Britain, France, Italy, Japan, Greece, Bulgaria and Yugoslavia, U.S.A. participated as an observer. The Conference signed in all 17 agreements of which the Treaty of Lausanne was the most important. By this treaty Turkey got very favourable terms. However, she agreed to give up Transjordan, Palestine, Mesopotamia, Syria and Hedjaz.
She was allowed to retain the whole of Anotolia, Armenia, Adrianople, Eastern Tarce, Smyrna, Galacia, Adalia, etc. The treaty also did not impose any limitations on the Turkish navy and military. Turkey also became independent in the economic sphere. Thus Turkey achieved virtually all that she had demanded in the National Pact.
Minorities Treaties
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As a consequence of the various treaties a number of new states came into being. But the emergence of these new states created the problem of the security of minorities. As the aspirations of all the nationalities could not be fulfilled by these treaties and in some of the states important minorities were left, something had to be done to safeguard their interests. For this purpose the Paris Conference appointed a New States Committee to consider the question of minority safeguards.
This Committee steered “a course which would, on the one hand, avoid giving so much autonomy to minorities as to constitute them states within the states, and on the other hand, providing so little protections for them that their position might become precarious”. A broad pattern of minority rights and safeguards was prepared, on the basis of which peace treaties were concluded with Austria, Hungary, Bulgaria and Turkey.
The Allied powers concluded separate minorities treaties with Czechoslovakia (September 10, 1919), Yugoslavia (September 10, 1919), Rumania (December 9, 1919), Greece (August 10, 1920), and Armenia (August 10, 1920). In certain cases the states concluded bilateral minority treaties also. These minorities treaties recognized political, economic, cultural and humanitarian rights of the minority communities.
The League of Nations was authorised to exercise supervision over the minority guarantees and these guarantees could be modified only with the consent of a majority of the League Council.