Book review: Water threatens to disrupt Iraqi-Kurdish-Turkish relations
Diminishing sources of clean water and rising demand could increase tension between Baghdad and Erbil, as well as Baghdad and Ankara, a new book says
Water has been a headache for Iraq since the late 1970s, when Turkey began building huge dams on the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in the southeast of the country for irrigation and hydroelectric power generation. The dams reduced the flow of the two rivers beyond the Turkish border, raising fears in Baghdad as well as Damascus that Ankara might one day turn off the tap. Turkey is certainly able to control how much river water Iraq and Syria receive (the Euphrates flows through Syria before reaching Iraq). With Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan still in the mood for expansionist adventures, Syrian and Iraqi leaders might well be justified in feeling nervous.
Also in this section
21 February 2025
While large-scale planned LNG schemes in sub-Saharan Africa have faced fresh problems, FLNG projects are stepping into that space
20 February 2025
Greater social mobility means increased global demand for refined fuels and petrochemical products, with Asia leading the way in the expansion of refining capacity
19 February 2025
The EU would do well to ease its gas storage requirements to avoid heavy purchase costs this summer, with the targets having created market distortion while giving sellers a significant advantage over buyers
18 February 2025
Deliveries to China decline by around 1m b/d from move to curb crude exports to Shandong port, putting Iran under further economic pressure
