ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Iraqi Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein told Rudaw on Monday that his Turkish counterpart Hakan Fidan is set to visit Iraq to sign a memorandum of understanding (MoU) on water, adding that Baghdad expects Ankara to release more water.
Hussein visited Ankara on October 10 and held meetings with Turkish officials. His delegation included Iraq's water officials.
"We reached an understanding that they would release some water to the Euphrates and some to the Tigris for 50 days, because it's predicted that after 50 days winter will begin and rain and snow will fall, and the situation will change. But we reached another long-term understanding about how to deal with and manage water. We have reached an understanding with the Turkish government and Turkish companies that they will manage water in Iraq," Hussein told Rudaw.
"We will sign a memorandum of understanding. When I return, I expect Hakan Fidan, the Foreign Minister, to come to Iraq so we can both sign this memorandum," he added.
The memorandum covers key water management strategies: building dams in Iraq, recycling wastewater, collecting rainwater, managing groundwater, and desalinating seawater—tasks Turkish companies will handle due to their expertise. It’s a strategic agreement. In the short term, Turkey will release more water to Iraq over the next 50 days.
Iraq depends heavily on the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, both originating in Turkey. However, large Turkish dam projects, including the Southeastern Anatolia Project (GAP), have significantly reduced water flow to Iraq, worsening drought, desertification, and environmental degradation. Currently, Iraq receives less than 40 percent of its historical water share.
While Iraq’s water crisis is driven by climate change, declining rainfall, poor resource management and upstream damming by Turkey and Iran, the absence of comprehensive water-sharing agreements with these neighbors leaves Iraq vulnerable to unilateral upstream actions that threaten its water security.
PKK-Turkey peace process
The Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) and Turkey have publicly been engaged in peace talks for about a year.
The PKK declared a unilateral ceasefire after its founder, Abdullah Ocalan, who has been jailed since 1999, released a message in February calling on the group to end its decades-long armed struggle against the Turkish state. On July 11, a group of PKK fighters burned their weapons in Jasana Cave in Sulaimani province in a symbolic disarmament as part of the peace process. A Turkish parliamentary commission is now formulating the legal foundations for peace with the PKK.
Hussein said that Turkey informed them of the past talks between Ankara ana the jailed PKK leader Abdullah Ocalan.
He added that the process is important for Iraq.
"It's an important process both for Turkey's interior and for us, because as is known, the PKK is in the Qandil mountains, in Shingal, and other places. So it's important for us that the PKK and the Turkish government reach an agreement and lay down arms. We have supported the disarmament process so that the issue becomes a political matter. Until now they continue, and dialogue between them continues. But just starting the process is an important matter," he said.
"When we talk about Qandil, we're talking about Kurdistan which is in Iraq. When we talk about Shingal, that's also in Iraq. Therefore, the issue is important for Iraq. It's important that PKK fighters in Qandil lay down their arms and this problem no longer remains in Iraq, and the process returns to Turkey and becomes a political process. They create various problems for us in Iraq. One of those problems is that the Turks always say we are there or conduct military attacks because the PKK is there. When the PKK is no longer there, Iraq can discuss this matter with the Turks in a different way," he added.
Iraq banned the PKK in March last year ahead of a visit from Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan when the two sides signed agreements in various fields, including security.
Alla Shally contributed to this article.
