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Growing Turkish-Iraqi ties brought Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan to Baghdad on Sunday, just three weeks after his counterpart, Fuad Hussein, visited Türkiye.
Speaking at a joint news conference with Hussein in the Iraqi capital, Fidan signalled a turning point in bilateral relations on water issues, with a deal involving the use of Iraq’s oil revenues to rehabilitate the country’s water resources, with assistance from Turkish companies.
“We will sign today a crucially important agreement,” Fidan told reporters. “For years, Türkiye and Iraq sought the most efficient use of water and about two and a half years ago, during my meeting with Mr. prime minister, we reached an agreement. We decided to follow a two-pronged approach: finding a better method for water use between Türkiye and Iraq, and developing a framework for cooperation to rehabilitate Iraq’s water infrastructure and irrigation systems. We worked hard on these matters since then,” Fidan told reporters.
The two countries announced a tentative deal last month to share water and manage the Tigris (Dicle) and Euphrates (Fırat) rivers. In the past, Iraq complained that dams built by Türkiye on the two rivers reduced its water supply, as its major freshwater sources. Upstream Turkish dams, however, are essential, especially for Türkiye’s southeastern and eastern regions, which rely heavily on agriculture, in a country whose water resources face severe shortages at times due to climate change.
Fidan said the agreement would hopefully pave the way for the permanent rehabilitation of Iraq’s water systems and would be “the biggest infrastructure investment” in Iraq’s history. “This is rather a work that exhibits the Iraqi government’s visionary approach and will to improve its people’s welfare. Once implemented, this deal will comprise a significant step toward resolving the water problem. We hope the next generations will not suffer from the problems we suffered,” Fidan underlined.
The two ministers later signed a “mechanism document” to finance water cooperation projects between the two countries, in the presence of Iraqi Prime Minister Muhammad Shia Al Sudani. Foreign Ministry sources said the mechanism includes regulations for implementing the framework agreement on water cooperation, signed during President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s visit to Iraq in 2024. It involves infrastructure modernization to enable the efficient and sustainable use of Iraq’s water supplies and the financing of projects, which will be conducted by Turkish companies in the field through a system based on Iraq’s oil sales. Sources said the framework agreement and the mechanism document marked the beginning of a new strategic era in economic and commercial relations between Türkiye and Iraq and would also facilitate Turkish contractors’ foray into the Iraqi market.
Iraq’s security
“We fully support Iraq’s security and development,” Fidan also said at the news conference. “Regional countries can solve their problems on their own; we don’t need saviors elsewhere,” Fidan added.
He underlined regional cooperation and unity, saying division, rivalry and undermining one another should not define the region’s future.
“There is no reason why we cannot do in this region what the rest of the civilized world is doing,” Fidan said. “Our region has extraordinary resources. Its geography, people, civilization, culture, faith and historical heritage – all of these mean that if we implement the right strategies, there is no reason this region cannot become a heaven on earth, a land of prosperity and stability that contributes to the rest of the world.”
Fidan noted that Iraq had endured great hardship in recent years. “Thankfully, today we see an Iraq taking more confident steps toward stability, peace and security,” he said. “Türkiye’s support for Iraq’s peace, security, development and prosperity is full and unwavering. We will contribute in every way we can.”
He also said developments in Syria are being closely monitored.
“As Iraq and Türkiye, alongside other regional countries, we are working on what we can do in Syria,” Fidan said. “We must raise regional cooperation to the highest level, strengthen trust among us, take long-delayed steps for development and continue our path in peace and stability.”
Fidan thanked Iraq’s political leadership and parties for supporting a vision of regional peace. “We always say that the countries and peoples of the region will solve the problems of our region. We will not wait for saviors from outside. We have the strength, capacity and vision,” he said.
Regarding energy cooperation, Fidan said Türkiye and Iraq are working closely together. He highlighted the restart of the oil flow between the two countries as an important step. He added that discussions are ongoing on natural gas and electricity cooperation, with relevant ministries already working.
Fidan also said progress in the terror-free Türkiye initiative benefits not only Türkiye but the region. He was referring to the initiative launched by the People’s Alliance of Türkiye, which involves the disarmament of the terrorist group PKK. The PKK’s senior cadres are based in mountainous territories in northern Iraq, an area controlled by Iraq’s Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG).
“The PKK’s decision to dissolve itself is undoubtedly a positive development,” Fidan said. Ending armed activities in Türkiye is extremely important. But we expect that the group will also end armed activities and terrorism in Iraq, withdraw from areas it occupies there, and do the same in Syria. The PKK currently occupies large areas in Iraq. We are working closely with Iraqi authorities on this, and we thank both Baghdad and the KRG seat, Irbil, for their cooperation. Ending PKK activities not only in Türkiye, but also in Iraq and Syria – and even Iran – is crucial for regional stability and security and to prevent external interference.”
Fidan noted the deep historical ties between Türkiye and Iraq, saying the two nations have lived side by side for centuries. He stressed Türkiye’s commitment to strengthening these ties and said President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s support for the Iraqi people and government is firm.
Regarding Iraq’s parliamentary elections scheduled for Nov. 11, Fidan said, “I hope the elections will be beneficial for the people of Iraq and our region. I believe they will demonstrate the maturity of Iraqi democracy. I wish success to all the competing parties. Türkiye respects the will of the Iraqi people. Just as we have worked very productively with Prime Minister Al Sudani, we hope to continue working in the same way in the future.”
For his part, Hussein said Türkiye and Iraq maintain strong historical and geographical links and relations based on shared interests that have flourished in commerce, the economy, energy and other areas. He said they held comprehensive talks in Ankara in the past on the water issue and that they had already reached a consensus that evolved into a memorandum of understanding. He said Sunday’s agreement was “first” in the history of Turkish-Iraqi relations.
On the disarmament of the PKK, Hussein said they strongly supported the initiative. He acknowledged the presence of “armed elements” of the PKK in the Iraqi territories. He said they hoped “both sides reach a tangible solution for stability in Makhmur and Sinjar as well,” referring to two locations in Iraq outside Qandil mountain in the north where PKK members are still present.
