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Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani announced his government's determination to resolve Iraq's chronic water shortage crisis by leveraging Türkiye's successful experience in managing this issue.
He delivered these remarks while presiding over a comprehensive meeting at the Basra Governorate Office to follow up on measures addressing the water scarcity problem in the province.
He emphasized that each season brings reduced rainfall, which affects water reserves and the volume of water releases from allocated shares, primarily from neighboring Türkiye.
Sudani stressed that the solution is not limited to immediate measures; rather, cooperation and teamwork are essential to confront the crisis. He called for strict action against those violating water quotas and encroaching on riverbanks.
Furthermore, he explained that the government has signed a strategic agreement with Türkiye regarding water management, aiming to transfer Türkiye’s successful water management methods to Iraq through experience in implementing dam projects and water stations.
Iraq’s drought crisis is worsening at an unprecedented rate due to reduced rainfall over recent years caused by climate change. Another major factor is the decline in water levels flowing through the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, caused by water policies from Iran and Türkiye—most notably dam construction at the rivers’ sources and diversion of their courses. This situation threatens to spark a humanitarian disaster in the country.
On Wednesday morning, Iraqi Parliament Speaker Mahmoud Al-Mashhadani received a phone call from Turkish Parliament Speaker Numan Kurtulmus, who announced the start of releasing the first additional water discharges to the Tigris and Euphrates rivers.
The office of Al-Mashhadani said in a statement that this step comes as part of implementing the agreement reached during Al-Mashhadani’s meeting with Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, where it was agreed to increase water releases to reach 420 cubic meters per second.
Al-Mashhadani expressed his gratitude to the Turkish president and the speaker of the Turkish parliament for their swift response, noting that Türkiye is an important neighbor to Iraq. He added that prospects for cooperation between the two countries signal more opportunities for joint coordination in the interest of both peoples.
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