Iraq – Minister of Water Resources: Iraq to Obtain its Water Rights from the Two Neighbors, Iran and Turkey.

Baghdad- Iraq  04/10/2020

The Iraqi Minister of Water Resources, Mahdi Rashid Al-Hamdani, said that Iraq is keen to obtain its water rights from the two neighboring countries, Iran and Turkey and that there are positive discussions about reaching understandings regarding the water file, especially with Turkey. The Minister of Water Resources indicated that since 2003 The water file in Iraq did not receive such high-level attention from the Iraqi government and the prime minister, Mustafa Al-Kazemi, this is a message to neighboring countries on the strength of the Iraqi negotiator and his eagerness to reach to understandings shortly. Al-Hamdani explained that there are measures taken by Iran led to a sudden and large decline in both the Sirwan River at the front of the Darbandikhan Dam, and Zab River at the front of the Dokan Dam, which affected the amount of water coming into Iraq, in addition to the cities that highly depend on these rivers.