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Iraqi children playing on a dried river in this file photo. PRESS PHOTO

Iraq's Minister of Water Resources, Latif Rashid, called on Iranian officials on Saturday to help Iraq secure its needed water supplies for a number of regions in the country that face a water shortage.

Iraqi Minister of Water Resources Latif Rashid, heading a delegation of 14 officials from his ministry, including Director Generals of the water and dams, visited Tehran to hold water talks with Iranian officials with the hope of persuading the Iranians to help Iraq overcome the water shortage it has been suffering from for the past two years due to lack of rain and the construction of a number of dams on the rivers flowing into the country from the neighboring countries such as Iran, Syria, and Turkey.

The crisis has paralyzed agriculture and severely hurt the environment in some regions throughout Iraq, including part of Kurdistan Region. A number of villages in the Garmian district, southeast of Suleimaniya, have been abandoned due to drought, and their inhabitants have immigrated to the city centers.

Two strategic rivers pouring into Kurdistan Region from Iran, the Sirwan and Alwand rivers, have almost dried up.

"The water shortage has created many problems for Iraq and this has resulted in difficulties in supplying water for some regions, so Iraq needs Iran's help and mutual cooperation to solve its water problems," Rashid told reporters after meeting with the caretaker of Iranian energy ministry, Majid Namjou, in Tehran on Sunday, October 25.

"Iraq has long water borders with Iran and [relevant] problems are due to be resolved by the two countries at the earliest," he added.
The two countries have long sought to resolve problems pertaining to a shared stretch of water, called Arvand Roud.

Arvand Roud (known as the Shatt al-Arab in Arabic), a strategic, 200-kilometers-long (120-mile) extension of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers in Iraq, and Karoun River in Iran, runs between Iraq and Iran, separating the two countries by a width of 400 to 1,500 meters before flowing into the Persian Gulf.

Rashid also pointed out that Iraq has also sought the help of two more of its neighbors, Turkey and Syria, to solve water problems of its people and farmers.

Besides, Rashid also said on Sunday that Iraq and Iran agreed in Tehran to establish a high technical committee to solve the water issue between the two countries.

"The minister asserted that the water situation in Iraq is very difficult due to the lack of water in the past two years, which negatively affects the agricultural and environmental reality in the country," the water resources ministry said in a statement.

He praised Iraqi-Iranian relations, stating that the Iranian government helps Iraq in several fields, and expressing hope that Iran will help Iraq in the water issue such as Syria and Turkey.
The delegation also visited two major dam and hydro power projects in Iran. One of them was the dam project for supplying drinking water for Tehran and Karaj, in which modern techniques have been used such as tunnels to solve the water shortage. This project is the largest such project in the Middle East.

The delegation also visited the Siyah Bisheh Dam construction project north of Tehran, which will be used to generate power.
The purpose of the visits was for Iraq to benefit from the Iranian expertise in managing its water resources and fighting water shortage.

The Iraqi Water Minister said that due to the fact that Tehran and the Iraqi Kurdistan Region have many similarities in their weather, the Iranian companies can implement such projects in Kurdistan as well.

The Iraqi delegation also held meetings with 50 Iranian investment companies specialized in establishing dams and the reclamation of lands and in different irrigation projects to discuss possible opportunities of investment in Iraq.

The Iraqi delegation also met with the Iranian Vice President, Dr. Mohamed Reza Rahimi, on Wednesday, October 28.

Minister Rashid said at the beginning of his meeting with Rahimi that the Iraqi government and people will never forget the help and support of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

"In fact, this cooperation and friendly relation is rooted in the geography, history, religion, and other common points between the two countries of Iran and Iraq," Rashid said as he called for Iran's support toward Iraq.

Vice President Rahimi condemned the latest deadly explosions in Baghdad and expressed his condolences toward the Iraqi people and state.

Rahimi reasserted the security and economic relations and cooperation between Iran and Iraq, and said: "The Islamic Republic of Iran is in favor of a free and powerful Iraq, and we are ready to share our experience in various economic and security fields with the Iraqi people."