INA - BAGHDAD

The Minister of Water Resources, Aoun Dhiab, announced the agreement with the Turkish side for a committee representing it to visit Iraq within ten days to attend some sites and lay the practical foundations for the implementation of several projects in Iraq.

"These projects include irrigation, based on what was agreed upon during the visit of Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan to Baghdad last April while confirming the presence of Ankara’s readiness to implement irrigation, agricultural, and other projects related to dams," said Dhiyab to the Iraqi News Agency - INA.

He added, “The second meeting of the joint committee between Iraq and Turkey on water, which was held today, is very important. The Turkish side was chaired by their Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs and she preferred to attend the meeting due to its importance. Many points were found within the framework agreement which took place between PM Muhammed S. Al-Sudani and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan during his visit to Baghdad."

"This visit established the opening of a new relationship with the Turkish side, and gave a clear perspective on the nature of this relationship, as it paved the way for the entry of Turkish companies and the technologies they possess to implement infrastructure, especially irrigation projects, and various other files such as wastewater purification projects and water projects for purposes of drinking, human uses, and some agricultural projects," he included.

Dhiab added, "The committee is composed of several parties from the relevant authorities, in addition to the Ministry of Water Resources, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Construction and Housing, the Municipality of Baghdad, and the Ministry of Agriculture, and many of the supporting parties as well. Those consuming water were present, and the goal is to initiate new steps in the field of cooperation," indicating, "We presented many points of view and presented the water situation in Iraq, and explained the difficulties facing us during the current summer. They promised us to study this issue and give it importance, and we raised the issue of projects that could be implemented by the Turkish side, whether irrigation or agricultural projects, as well as dam and water harvesting projects. They, in turn, approved of this approach and expressed their willingness to contribute.”

"I assured them that we want practical steps in the field, not just meetings and encounters. It was agreed that a quick committee would come within a week or ten days to visit some sites and lay the practical foundations for implementation," he added, expressing that "I was optimistic that it will be a successful start in the field of cooperation because we need major work in managing water resources, such as the major work currently being done in the field of addressing traffic congestion."

He highlighted, "We need to address bottlenecks in our water resources, and there is a trend at this level. We hope that in cooperation with our neighbor Turkey, with its capabilities, we can move to this. The important stage referred to by the Prime Minister, which he greatly supports, is for this qualitative shift that must be achieved in the field of water resources management.”