Shafaq News–
Baghdad
Iraq’s parliament is set to confront its worsening watercrisis on Monday, summoning both the Foreign and Water Resources Ministers toclarify why Turkiye has not consistently released Iraq’s share of the Tigrisand Euphrates rivers.
On November 2, 2025, Baghdad and Ankara signed an executivedocument granting Turkiye a five-year mandate to manage rapid water releasesand related infrastructure in Iraq. The deal includes a commitment to deliverroughly one billion cubic meters of water to the country, aimed at easingsevere shortages.
According to Iraq Green Observatory, lawmakers have prepared20 questions to examine the government’s broader strategies for addressingwater scarcity, which has left southern and central provinces struggling tocope.
Warning that ministers may not provide full details of thewater agreement, the observatory described the framework as a “handover” thatplaces Iraq’s water resources under Turkiye’s management.
It also noted that the arrangement grants Ankara privileges,including the ability to export oil through Turkiye’s territory in exchange forfinancial compensation, while restricting Iraq’s options to respond topotential economic or military pressure without risking a complete watercutoff.
Lawmakers will additionally review the government’s approachto water management following recent rainfall and assess whether shortages arelikely during the upcoming summer.
Iraq continues to face an exceptional water crisis that hasdried up numerous tributaries and large sections of the southern marshes. Environmental projections from international climate institutions indicate thecountry could experience a 10–20 percent drop in annual rainfall by 2050.
: Oil for Water: Iraq bets on new Turkiye deal to ease drought crisis