Worsening water crisis between Türkiye and Iraq threatens water security and ignites new tensions

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[size=52]Worsening water crisis between Türkiye and Iraq threatens water security and ignites new tensions[/size]

[size=45]Relations between Turkey and Iraq are witnessing increasing tension, due to the crisis of water releases from Turkey to Iraq, which has greatly affected water levels in the Tigris River. Iraq depends heavily on the waters of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, which are two vital sources of fresh water in the country.[/size]
[size=45]Recently, Turkey has built several dams on the two rivers, reducing the amount of water reaching Iraq. This water shortage has serious impacts on agriculture, the environment, and human consumption in Iraq. In addition, Iraq suffers from major challenges in managing water resources, which further exacerbates the crisis.[/size]
[size=45]The two governments are trying to find diplomatic solutions to this problem, with ongoing meetings and negotiations between the two countries, however, a final agreement has not yet been reached that ensures the sustainable and equitable flow of water.[/size]
[size=45]“The lack of water discharges from Turkey to Iraq could lead to several major risks,” explains water expert Ali Abbas, noting that “there is a major impact on agriculture, as Iraq relies to a large extent on river water to irrigate crops, and the lack of water could lead to a reduction in cultivated areas and a decline in agricultural production, which directly affects food security in the country.”[/size]
[size=45]“There is an impact on the supply of potable water,” he added. “Lack of water supplies can reduce the amount of water available for drinking, which increases the risk of diseases associated with lack of potable water, such as intestinal diseases.”[/size]
[size=45]“Biodiversity and ecosystems in rivers and wetlands may be affected,” Abbas adds. “Water shortages affect wildlife and plants that depend on these water resources, threatening ecosystem degradation and species loss.”[/size]
[size=45]He added, “There are social and economic impacts, as water shortages can lead to conflicts between local communities over water resources, in addition to deteriorating economic conditions as a result of decreased agricultural production and a decline in water-related economic activities.”[/size]
[size=45]The water expert calls for “the need to reach diplomatic solutions and joint agreements between countries to ensure a fair and sustainable distribution of water between Turkey and Iraq.”[/size]
[size=45]Thaer Makhif, a member of the Parliamentary Committee on Agriculture, Water and Marshes, says, “The Iraqi government failed to resolve the water crisis with the Turkish side, even after Erdogan’s visit to Iraq.”[/size]
[size=45]Makhif added, “The marshes and most of the southern governorates have been exposed to a very serious drought, due to the water receding by the Turkish side,” indicating that “the latter will not move a finger regarding what is happening in Iraq, even if the people die of thirst.”[/size]
[size=45]He explains: “We blame the government in this file because it failed to engage in dialogue with the Turkish side regarding water releases, and if it had not been for the rains that fell last season, a disaster would have occurred on the Iraqi side.”[/size]
[size=45]He added, "Erdogan's visit did not provide any effective solutions to resolve this issue, and his visit came to focus on the security aspect only," noting that "the lack of water was the reason for the death of buffalo and fish, the drying up of the marshes, and the displacement of the people."[/size]
[size=45]Experts have been warning for years of the worsening drought crisis in Iraq, which has led to a clear decline in the waters of the Tigris and Euphrates, leading to their almost complete receding, as happened last February in a number of cities and villages in Maysan Governorate in the south of the country.[/size]
[size=45]For his part, the economic expert, Ahmed Al-Waili, explains that “reducing Iraq’s water share means a decrease in the share of water consumed per person daily, and it is an issue with sovereign and social dimensions.”[/size]
[size=45]He added, “Iraq’s failure to sign an agreement that guarantees its water share has major repercussions on the Iraqi economy and food security, as it will negatively affect the size of cultivated areas, which will increase desertification, climate change, and a decline in tourism, especially in the marshes, in addition to a decline in fish wealth, a decrease in agricultural production, an increase in the volume of imports, and a rise in migration rates from the countryside to the city.”[/size]
[size=45]It seems that the Iraqi governments have failed over the past century to sign a binding agreement with the two neighbors that would always guarantee the rights of Mesopotamia, as the total consumption rate for all needs in the country is about 53 billion cubic meters annually, while the amount of river water in good seasons is estimated at about 77 billion cubic meters, and in dry seasons about 44 billion cubic meters. A shortage of one billion cubic meters from Iraq’s water share means that 260 thousand acres of agricultural land will go out of production.[/size]
[size=45]The roots of the Iraqi-Turkish water crisis go back to the 1920s, when 1920 witnessed the signing of “tripartite and bilateral” agreements between Iraq, Turkey and Syria to divide the waters according to the international standards followed at the time, which were later reinforced by the signing of the Treaty of Peace between Turkey and the Allies in Lausanne in 1923, a multilateral agreement that included a special text related to the waters of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, as Article 109 of this agreement stated that none of these three countries has the right to build a dam or reservoir or divert the course of a river without holding a joint session with the other countries and consulting them to ensure that no harm is caused to any party.[/size]
[size=45]According to experts, Iraq needs between 42-50 billion cubic meters annually to support the agricultural plan, taking into consideration desertification, evaporation, and the scarcity of groundwater, which consumes a lot of these quantities annually.[/size]
[size=45]Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani announced during a joint press conference with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan the signing of more than 24 memoranda of understanding in several fields, including a 10-year agreement on water resources management, during the Turkish President's visit to Iraq.[/size]
[size=45]The agreement aims to ensure that Iraq “obtains its fair share” of water from the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, which originate in Turkey, the main source of fresh water in Iraq, which has been suffering from a severe water shortage for years.[/size]
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