WATER ISSUES BETWEEN TURKEY, SYRIA AND IRAQ

Abstract

As to Israel, another Middle Eastern country which has problems connected with water, the question has many facets: international water experts point out that the Occupied Territories, especially the Golan Heights and the West Bank, are of vital importance to Israel from a water resources point of view. This assessment is confirmed by Israeli officials. Israel controls the tributaries of the Jordan River and utilises the waters of this river to the maximum level. Similarly, in the occupied West Bank, underground water resources are greatly utilised by Israel. Forty percent of the annual water requirement of Israel is supplied by these underground water sources1. Within this framework, the majority of all the water resources which Israel uses come from the adjacent Arab territories under Israeli occupation.2 If Israel loses its control of these territories during the process of the Middle East peace negotiations, this might lead to a serious deprivation of water resources for Israel. Although Israeli officials say that they may make some territorial concessions to the surrounding Arab countries, they openly state that these water resources are indispensable for Israel3. Water, in this context, is becoming a determining factor for the establishment of peace between Israel and its Arab neighbours.

References

1. 1 Eitan, Rafael (1990), 'Israel's Critical Water Situation', Water and Irrigation Review, AprilOctober, p. 8. Bulloch, John, and Darwish, Adel, op. cit., p. 43.
2. 2 Eitan, Rafael, ibid., p. 9.
3. 3 Gruen, George E. (1994), 'International Regional Cooperation: Preconditions and Limits', Friedrich Naumann Foundation, April, p.273. Booklet of the conference entitled 'Water as an Element of Cooperation and Development in the Middle East'.
4. 4 Information obtained from the General Directorate of State Hydraulic Works of Turkey.
5. 5 Information received from Turkish Ministry of Public Works.
6. 6 Bulloch, John, and Darwish, Adel, op. cit., pp. 189-190.
7. 7 Kolars, John F. (1993), 'Problems of International River Management: The Case of Euphrates', papers from the Middle East Water Forum, Cairo, 7-10 February, p. 49. Naff, Thomas, and Matson, R.C. (1984), 'Water in the Middle East: Conflict or Cooperation?', a Westview Replica edition, London, p.92. Anderson, Ewan W. (1986), 'Water Geopolitics in the Middle East: The Key Countries', Conference on U.S. Foreign Policy on Water Resources in the Middle East: Instrument for Peace and Development, CSIS, Washington D.C., 24 November, p. 191.
8. Beaumont, Peter (1978), 'The Euphrates River – An International Problem of Water Resources Development', Environmental Conservation, Vol.5, No.1, The Foundation for Environmental Conservation, p.42.

9. 8 Kolars, John F., and Mitchell, William A. (1991), The Euphrates River and the Southeast Anatolia Development Project, Water: The Middle East Imperative, Southern Illinois University Press, Carbondale and Edwardsville, p. 152.
10. 9 Op. cit., p. 152.
11. 10 Bilen,Özden (1993), 'Prospects for Technical Cooperation in the Euphrates-Tigris Basin', p.22.
12. Kolars, John F. and Mitchell, William A., op. cit., p. 152.
13. Kolars, John F. (1994), 'Managing the Impact of Development: The Euphrates and Tigris Rivers and the Ecology of the Arabian Gulf – A Link in Forging Tri-riparian Cooperation', Friedrich-Naumann Foundation, April, p.273. Booklet of the conference entitled 'Water as an Element of Cooperation and Development in the Middle East'. Picard, Elizabeth (1993), 'Eau et Sécurité. Dans le Bassin de l'Euphrate', Géopolitique, Automne, No.43, p. 76.
14. 11 Beschorner, Natasha (1993), 'Water and Instability in the Middle East', Adelphi Paper, No. 273, p. 29.
15. 12 Kolars, John F. (1994), op. cit., p. 137.
16. 13 Vesilind, Pritt J. (1993), 'Water: The Middle East's Critical Resource', National Geographic, May, p.50.
17. 14 Mr. W. El Zahawi, Senior Undersecretary of State, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Iraq), speaking at a round table discussion on 'The Euphrates Water Issue' at the Arab Research Centre, London,19 February 1990.
18. Article by El-Hayat newspaper, printed in London, 31 December 1993. Article by Ibarahim Hümeydi, Damascus correspondent of the El-Hayat newspaper, Riyadh
19. 19 February 1994.
20. 19 ibid., p. 4.
21. 21 The Yearbook of the International Law Commission, 1987, Volume II, Part 2, A/CN.4/SER.A/1987/Add.1 (Part 2), p.19.