Arab water crisis, challenges and dangers And the position of international law on it

Abstract

From time to time, problems arise from water scarcity among the riparian countries in the Middle East, especially in times of drought. Due to the unfair policies pursued by the upstream countries towards downstream countries by blocking water, building dams, reservoirs, irrigation projects and generating hydroelectric power, serious damage was caused to downsream countries. They are negatively affected and the relations between the two sides were at risk together with the international peace and security. This is contrary to good neighborly relations and the principles of international law on water and the special relations between the riparian states that have been approved by international laws. On this regard, Iraq's water relations with Iran and Turkey and the policies that the two countries undertake towards Iraq are involved in this context. The crisis has worsened in recent years specially after Turkey and Iran’s building many dams, reservoirs and irrigation projects, which led to severe damage to Iraq which most of its lands become deserts and the increase in environmental pollution in its waters. In order to confront this, it is imperative that Iraq take important steps in order to solve this problem that plagues its national security on the future of its generations, whether through talks with each of the two neighbors Turkey and Iran, and if this does not work, resort to international and regional organizations to find a solution to this serious problem. As for the matter of the implications of Ethiopia's construction of the largest dam in the African continent and the tenth largest dam in the world, the Renaissance Dam, it will deprive Egypt of cultivating large areas of land, which will negatively affect the lives of millions of Egyptian and Sudanese citizens. Therefore, Egypt made a diplomatic move at various levels for Reducing the risks that fall on the Egyptian people, trying to schedule the filling of the dam. Many contacts were made regarding it, in which the United States intervened to sponsor these talks and bring views closer. This research sheds light on the reality of problems resulting from water scarcity and the unfair policies practiced by upstream countries vis-à-vis the Arab countries, and how to confront this reality through the following axes: The first axis: Iraq and Turkey and Iran's water policy. The second axis: the Tigris basin and the problems of water scarcity. The third axis: Egyptian national security and the Ethiopian Renaissance Dam. Then the conclusions and recommendations were presented at the end of the study.