§ Lord Aveburyasked Her Majesty's Government:
Whether they have been informed of any meeting between the Iraqi Minister of Water Resources and his Turkish counterpart; whether they have been asked for any assistance in facilitating such a meeting; and what further action they will take to ensure that Turkey consults with downstream riparian states, with a view to the sharing of the waters of the Euphrates and the Tigris on the basis of international law. [HL4622]
§ The Minister of State, Foreign and Commonwealth Office (Baroness Symons of Vernham Dean)The UK has not been informed of a meeting between the Iraqi Minister of Water Resources and his Turkish counterpart and has not been approached to facilitate such a meeting. A committee was set up in 1983 between Iraq, Turkey and Syria to agree an equitable 35WA water-sharing arrangement but it has not met for a number of years. I have asked our Embassy in Ankara to find out whether there has been any recent dialogue between Iraq and Turkey on the sharing of transboundary water resources.