Key Studies in Diplomacy the Global 1923 and Treaty of Lausanne

This book explores the international dimensions of the peace settlement of the Eastern Mediterranean. The Global 1923 and the Treaty of Lausanne looks at one of the twentieth century’s most controversial international agreements that settled the long great war of the Eastern Mediterranean. Drawing upon extensive research on British, French, Italian, Turkish, Greek, American, Armenian, and other archival material, this book demonstrates the importance of reconsidering the peace settlement in Lausanne within the evolving global and regional power contexts. The findings call attention to diverging peace aims within the so-called united allied front, and underscore the degree to which the negotiators themselves considered the Eastern Question as the framework to shape the settlement. In doing so, it foregrounds the role of the alliances, the military might, the business elites and the strive for winning the public opinion. The volume discusses the role of imperialism and the Eastern Question discourse at the Lausanne Peace Conference, and reassesses the different strategies pursued by the delegations involved in the 1923 conference. Though the Soviets were only allowed to be part in settling one issue at the Conference, The Global 1923 highlights the Turco-Soviet relations that shaped the settlement. In a similar vein, the Kurdish, Armenian and Arab grievances that sprouted out of the Great War and were neglected at Lausanne constitute some of the contested and intricate issues in Middle Eastern politics. The American influence, even if the US delegation had only an observer status, is addressed in a broader political economical setting. The Global 1923 reveals how the entanglement and the contestation at Lausanne continues to inform our contemporary politics today. This book is a cutting-edge analysis of how the peace treaty was achieved in Lausanne by placing it in the global context. The Treaty of Lausanne reconsidered explores events from the long great war to the conclusion of the Treaty of Lausanne, examining imperialism and divergent - among and within states - motives, actions and constraints that shaped the peace settlement. It shows that peace can only last if it is a product of negotiation and not imposition. In doing so, the book addresses the silences and the absences that eventually formed controversial aspects of the settlement. It highlights the degree to which the Eastern Question discourse and the western powers’ concerns in light of the emerging Turco-Soviet alliance, shaped the proceedings in Lausanne. The Treaty of Lausanne reconsidered reveals how the entanglement and the contestation at Lausanne continues to inform our contemporary politics today.