AUIB’s Center for Policy Research afforded students at the College of International Studies the opportunity to listen to Ambassador Dr. Hisham Al-Alawi, Iraq’s Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs for Political Planning and former Ambassador to Turkey, as he elaborated on Iraqi-Turkish relations in the context of regional challenges, including regional stability, water security, trade, and development. After delivering his lecture titled “Relations between Baghdad and Ankara: Shared Visions and Regional Challenges of Water, Trade, and Security”, the seasoned diplomat engaged students in discussion, delving into contentious, yet critical subjects, central to the lives and future prospects of Iraqi citizens.
Dr. Muslih Irwani, Founding Director of AUIB’s Center for Policy Research, presented the distinguished guest speaker, highlighting the value of exploring the evolving Iraqi-Turkish relations, within the framework of regional dynamics, to the Center’s efforts at informing public debate on public policy and institutional reform through rigorous research and academic discussion forums.
Iraqi-Turkish relations are “a top priority for any Iraqi government” due to numerous factors, foremost of which are the overlapping and interdependent national interests, but also the shared “Ottoman legacy,” maintained Dr. Al-Alawi, highlighting the issues of water security and transnational trade as chief among the former. He pointed out the declining quantities of incoming water through the Tigris and the Euphrates, and the fact that Turkey has not signed onto international conventions governing water projects on international rivers, basically avoiding the latter description of the two rivers, and continuing to be unresponsive to the efforts on part of successive Iraqi governments at getting Ankara to guarantee Iraq its fair share of two rivers’ waters, in accordance with the country’s historical rights and the principles of international law that forbid causing riparian states significant harm.
The senior diplomat saw that the resolution of this conflict “would help build confidence” between the two countries, facilitating agreement and cooperation in other important spheres. He affirmed that “Iraq is one of Turkey’s most important trade partners,” where the volume of bilateral trade has risen steadily and significantly over the past years, “mainly in favor of Turkey,” said Dr. Al-Alawi, pointing out in this context the importance of the Development Road project, which would “integrate Iraq into regional value chains,” while “providing great opportunities for Turkish companies” and buttressing regional stability, also presenting an opportunity to build a regional “telecommunications and energy network,” the Iraqi official noted.