Baghdad (AFP) July 20, 2009 – Iraq’s water resources ministry on Monday called for talks with neighbouring Turkey and Syria after the flow of water in the Euphrates river fell by more than half in less than a month.

The ministry is aiming for “an urgent meeting with ministers and experts from the three countries concerned this coming August to discuss the sharing of water and the fluctuation of flows to Iraq,” a statement said. The Euphrates’s flow “in the Hassaiba region (near the Iraq-Syria border) is very low,” it said. “For 10 days, it has been 250 cubic metres per second (m3/s) and these quantities are not sufficient for agriculture and other needs.” … According to the water resources ministry, Iraq needs a flow of water along the Euphrates equaling around 500 m3/s to fulfill just half of its requirements for irrigation. The flow of the Euphrates, which runs through Syria before reaching Iraq, is now running at just over half of its 2000 level of 950 m3/second. …

Iraq wants urgent water talks with Turkey, Syria