Middle East
Turkish flag (left) and an area in Iraq where Euphrates and Tigris rivers meet. Graphic: Rudaw
ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Turkey has promised to release more water for downstream Iraq, which is suffering from a serious drought, Baghdad’s water resources ministry announced on Friday.
Iraqi Water Resources Minister Aoun Diab contacted Ankara on Friday to ask it “to increase water releases in the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, to overcome the water shortage crisis and maintain the environmental flow of the two rivers,” the ministry said in a statement.
Turkey “showed complete understanding of the crisis and promised to increase the quantities of water released from Turkish dams towards Iraq, within the framework of joint cooperation, understandings, and good relations with neighboring Turkey,” it added.
Iraq is suffering under a severe drought that has forced many people to abandon their villages and towns.
“Iraq is among the 15 most climate-affected countries globally,” Torhan al-Mufti, a water advisor to Prime Minister Mohammed Shia’ al-Sudani, told Rudaw in March.
Turkey had pledged in July to increase water releases into the Tigris and Euphrates rivers by 420 cubic meters per second following a meeting between Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Iraqi Parliament Speaker Mahmoud al-Mashhadani.
Iraqi politicians have accused Turkey of failing to fulfil its promises.
“Turkey has not upheld its commitment to release Iraq’s water shares,” Thaer al-Jabouri, a member of the parliament’s agriculture, irrigation, and marshlands committee, told Rudaw last month. “If Turkey continues this policy, Turkish companies should be barred from working in Iraq.”
Turkish government officials denied to Rudaw that Ankara has reduced the flow of water into Iraq, and claimed that Iraqi officials have expressed satisfaction with the current levels.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, the two officials said that Turkey itself is facing a “severe” drought, though this has not impacted the water flow from Turkey to Iraq.
Iraq relies heavily on the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, both originating in Turkey, for its water supply. Large Turkish dams, including the Southeastern Anatolia Project (GAP), have significantly reduced water flow in these rivers, exacerbating drought, desertification, and environmental degradation. Currently, Iraq receives less than 40 percent of its historical water share.
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