Iraq calls on Iran to cooperate to resolve water crisis

TEHRAN (FNA) - Iraqi Minister of Water Resources Latif Rashid on Saturday called on the Iranian officials to help Iraq secure its needed water supplies for a number of regions in the country which face water shortage.

""The water shortage has created many problems for Iraq and this has resulted in difficulties for 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 caretaker of Iranian energy ministry Majid Namjou here in Tehran today.

""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 (437 to 1,640 yards) 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.

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