Sustainable Water Development between Iraq and Turkey

Abstract

The Tigris and Euphrates are international rivers, and their waters are a strategic element for development, necessitating continuous efforts to achieve their most efficient use. However, Turkey has aimed to use the water for political purposes, bargaining with Iraq over its oil resources and using the water in ways that threaten Iraq's vital interests.

The water issue is one of the most complex problems facing Turkish-Arab relations, particularly with Iraq. The Turkish government believed that the water flowing in the Tigris and Euphrates basins was Turkish water because it originated in Turkish territory, and therefore it was not obligated to provide Iraq with a fixed share. This led the Iraqi government to sign agreements with Turkey for development and economic projects. The Turkish government agreed to these agreements but later violated them. Iraq recently confronted Turkish policy and demanded its legal rights to the waters of the Tigris and Euphrates, prompting the Turkish government to halt the flow of water. The Iraqi government complied with the conditions set by Turkey, and thus the water issue between Turkey and Iraq remains unresolved to this day.

The water issue between Turkey and Iraq persists to this day.  The water problem between Iraq and Turkey first emerged in the mid-1970s following Turkey's completion of the Keban Dam, one of the country's largest dams, and the subsequent water storage. Water scarcity in Iraq reached critical levels due to the imbalance between limited supply and increasing demand. Among the serious consequences that Iraq's future may face are water projects related to the Tigris and Euphrates rivers undertaken by its neighbors—Turkey, Syria, and Iran—which have resulted in these countries infringing upon Iraq's water rights in the Tigris and Euphrates due to illegal practices employed in their projects.