<p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="text-align: center; line-height: 150%;" align="center"><a name="_Hlk109310361"></a><strong><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 18.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Regional cooperation between Iraq and Egypt on water resources management</span></strong></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="margin-left: -24.15pt; line-height: 150%;"><a name="_GoBack"></a><strong><span style="color: #3598db;">Dr. Hamid Nima Al-Salihi</span><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">/ College of Imam Al-Kazim (pbuh) Department of Political Science</span></strong></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="margin-left: -24.15pt; text-align: justify; line-height: 150%;"><a name="_Hlk109310641"></a><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">There is a relative agreement in the views in the relations between the Iraqi and Egyptian sides over the years on the need for cooperation and finding points of commonality between them, the historical relations that bind the two countries, and supporting each other in crises of all kinds, resisting occupation and colonialism and advocating for their common national issues, are indications </span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>that </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>indicate an organic link between the Arab peoples, and this cooperation and interdependence does not mean that the agreement was taking place all the time, because there are some gaps and difficulties that faced The two parties in their relations as a result of the difference in political views and conflict of interest between their political systems and historical aspects. </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="margin-left: -24.15pt; text-align: justify; line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Against the backdrop of holding a tripartite summit in Amman between Egypt, Jordan and Iraq on August <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span></span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>25, </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">2020, there was talk of establishing an economic partnership agreement between the three countries, or what was known as the "New Sham Project", </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>which was put forward by Iraqi Prime Minister Mustafa Al-Kazemi to King Abdullah II of Jordan and Egyptian President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi during the</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">tripartite summit</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"> in </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Amman with the aim of finding and promoting common interests between Egypt, Jordan and Iraq, for the purpose of being the nucleus of a more expanded Arab union in The future, this project depends on three pillars, namely the oil mass in Iraq, the human mass in Egypt, and Jordan as a link between them.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="margin-left: -24.15pt; text-align: justify; line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; color: black; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-ansi-language: EN;">In February 2020, Egypt signed with Iraq (15) agreements and memorandums of understanding in various sectors, including oil, roads</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">, </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; color: black; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-ansi-language: EN;">housing</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">, electricity, construction, </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; color: black; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>trade, and others, after the Iraqi Council of Ministers approved in December </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>2020 the </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; color: black; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span></span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>renewal of the </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; color: black; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-ansi-language: EN;">contract to supply the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation with a total of 12 million barrels of Basra Light crude for the year 2021. </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="margin-left: -24.15pt; text-align: justify; line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; color: black; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-ansi-language: EN;">It is worth mentioning that a memorandum of understanding was previously signed between</span></span><a href="https://www.masrawy.com/news/Tag/464/%D9%85%D8%B5%D8%B1#bodykeywords"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; color: windowtext; mso-ansi-language: EN; text-decoration: none; text-underline: none;"> Egypt</span></span></a><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"> and Iraq in the field of water resources, the formation of a joint </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; color: black; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>technical steering committee from both sides, the formation of a joint working group of Egyptian technicians, which carried out many field visits to Iraq and the preparation of a joint formulation of a clear work program that reflects areas of cooperation between the two countries, including modern irrigation techniques, reuse, treatment methods, elimination of desertification, water monitoring, communication and accounting systems, water weed control, and hydraulics of rivers and beaches, including water quality. Sedimentation</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">, </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; color: black; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-ansi-language: EN;">institutional and legislative reform, beach protection and treatment of polluted water.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="margin-left: -24.15pt; text-align: justify; line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; color: black; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-ansi-language: EN;">The reality of Egypt and Iraq's handling of water problems resulting from the water policies of upstream and downstream countries indicates fundamental differences due to a number of geographical factors related to the rivers that flow into both countries, as well as the difference in the balance of power and regional factors affecting the policy of the two countries towards those countries, as</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"> the </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; color: black; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>reality</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"> of </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; color: black; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>Iraq water depends on the Tigris and Euphrates rivers to meet all its water needs and The two rivers originate in Turkey and flow into the Shatt al-Arab basin in southern Iraq. As the Euphrates River crosses</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"> Syria and Iraq, the Tigris River flows from Turkey and Iran to Iraq Turkey contributes 90% to the </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; color: black; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>Euphrates River while Syria contributes</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"> 10% to the flow of water, as </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; color: black; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>for the Tigris River, Turkey</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">, </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; color: black; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>Iran</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"> and Iraq </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; color: black; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-ansi-language: EN;">contribute 40%, 51% and 9% respectively</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">, as </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; color: black; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Iraq began to move from a state of water stability to a state of future water deficit, which will reach <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>(15,27) <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>billion m3</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">, in </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; color: black; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>2025 due to the risks of Turkish-Iranian projects, which will have a significant impact on the future of agriculture in Iraq.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="margin-left: -24.15pt; text-align: justify; line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; color: black; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Iraq is associated with Turkey, Iran and Syria with a number of agreements and protocols that regulate the process of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers towards its territory, some of which date back to the beginnings of the establishment of those countries in the last century, either for Egypt, most of the agreements concluded between it and the upstream countries date back to the time of colonialism and British trusteeship over them, but the difference between the downstream countries of Iraq and Egypt is that The latter has reached an agreement in 1959 with Sudan, in which water shares were shared</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"> between the two countries on the basis of the annual discharge rate at the Egyptian Aswan and the establishment of the High Dam and the Rosairos Dam under that agreement, </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; color: black; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span></span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>which </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; color: black; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>constituted</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"> a </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; color: black; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>distinct point for the Egyptian side in managing and organizing its water policy with the downstream state</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">, </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; color: black; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>unlike the Iraqi administration, which reached a 1989 agreement with Syria regarding the sharing of the Euphrates River water between the two countries on the basis of the Syrian agreement. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>The Turkish signed in 1987</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">, to </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; color: black; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-ansi-language: EN;">which Iraq was not a party</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">, and </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; color: black; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-ansi-language: EN;">objected to it at that time</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">, and </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; color: black; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>this agreement determined Iraq's share of the water of the Euphrates River from the point of entry of the river into Syrian territory and not from the Syrian-Iraqi border,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp; </span>unlike the Egyptian agreement &ndash; Sudanese, which determined the share of the two countries from the point of entry of the Nile River Egyptian territory, and this is what deprives Iraq's right from the water that supplies the river inside the Syrian territory, and thus the amendment of this agreement and the benefit of the Egyptian-Sudanese agreement in this aspect would preserve Iraq's rights to obtain its real share of the water of the Euphrates River.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="margin-left: -24.15pt; text-align: justify; line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; color: black; mso-themecolor: text1; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp; </span>The point of distinction that is calculated in favor of Egyptian diplomacy and water policy on Iraqi diplomacy and policy in this aspect is that Egypt has a regional weight at the level of the African continent, and African countries always try to benefit from the Egyptian weight, whether at the regional or international level, in standing by its issues , as well as its capabilities in the application of optimal and integrated management of water resources that Iraq can <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>benefit from in the Egyptian experience in managing this vital and strategic sector.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="text-align: justify; line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">In</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"> light of the results of the visit of </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>Dr. Muhammad Abdul Ati</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">, Minister of Water Resources and Irrigation, to the State of Iraq to participate in the First Baghdad International Water Conference, which </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span></span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>was held on </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">March 13-14</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">, 2021, </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>during which it was agreed with Mr. Engineer Mahdi Rashid Al-Hamdani, Iraqi Minister of Water Resources, to accelerate the activation of the memorandum of understanding signed between the two countries in the field of water resources in <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>2020 through the formation of a joint technical steering committee <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>, </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>In light of the results of the </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span></span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>first meeting of the </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Egyptian-Iraqi Joint Technical Steering Committee</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"> in the field of water resources and irrigation, </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>which was held on<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp; </span>June</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"> </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">6</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">, </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>2021 to discuss opportunities to enhance joint cooperation in the fields of water management between the two brotherly countries<span style="color: black; mso-color-alt: windowtext; background: white;">, the Ministry of Irrigation and Water Resources stated that </span>An Egyptian delegation is preparing to visit Iraq to establish a huge</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"> water station on the Euphrates River similar to the Bahr al-Baqar water station in the country</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">,</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"> and the </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>ministry presented the report on the study </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>of the establishment of a treatment plant for the State of Iraq similar to </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>the Bahr al-Baqar water treatment plant for purification and desalination of water in the Euphrates River to confront the water shortage in the river in three Iraqi governorates (Alan</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"> </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Al-Sariyah - Diwaniyah - Basra), The Egyptian Minister of Irrigation, Mohamed Abdel Aty, said that in light of what was previously agreed upon with Engineer Mahdi Rashid Al-Hamdani, Iraqi Minister of Water Resources, regarding the exchange of technical visits between the two sides to benefit from the Egyptian experiences in the field of water management, Dr. Muhammad Heikal, consultant of the Bahr Al-Baqar water treatment plant, and Dr. Hussein Al-Jamal, Director of the Drainage Research Institute, visited the State of Iraq to study proposals for the treatment and reuse of water in Iraq.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="text-align: justify; line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Especially<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp; </span>since</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"> the </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Egyptian delegation visited many sites in the State of Iraq, where they visited the General Authority for Groundwater, the National Center for Water Resources Management, the Center for Engineering Studies and Designs, the Training and Development Center, and visited the province of Babylon to see the water resources projects</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"> in it, and </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>visited the challenge</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"> project </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>(Shatt al-Hilla rehabilitation project) </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>and the old and </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">new Kish station in southern Iraq and the developed and applied irrigation systems</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"> in </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>the Abu Ghraib area.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp; </span></span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="text-align: justify; line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">It should be noted that the Bahr al-Baqar water treatment plant is the largest treatment plant</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"> in the world and is located 10 </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">kilometers south of the Port Said tunnels in Sinai on an area</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"> of approximately </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>155 acres and is part of Egypt's plan to develop the axis of the Suez Canal and the Sinai Peninsula and maximize its natural resources, as it contributes to the reclamation</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"> of </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>400<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp; </span>thousand feddans through the recycling and operation of agricultural and industrial drainage water and sewage, which will be diverted from the West Bank to the East Bank under the canal Suez and after treatment will be discharged into the Sheikh Jaber Canal</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">, </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">where agricultural and industrial drainage and sewage water is collected from three drains, the largest of which is the Bahr Al-Baqar drain</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">, which is </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>106 </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>km long, </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">which flows into Lake Manzala, so this water is a source of pollution because of its negative environmental effects on human health and fisheries in Egypt.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="text-align: justify; line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">The Egyptian government has adopted an ambitious plan to build dozens of seawater desalination plants to help meet the country's growing water needs</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;">, </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>and so far, Egypt has built 82 desalination plants, with a total capacity of 917,000 cubic meters per day. The government also plans to build 14 new desalination plants to raise water capacity to 1.4 million cubic meters per day. Egypt has also launched a project worth EGP 80 billion (4, $26 billion) to rehabilitate canals with total lengths of 20,000 square kilometers.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="text-align: justify; line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">If the project of building a station on the Euphrates River is implemented by the Egyptian side, it will contribute to: </span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="margin-left: 14.15pt; text-align: justify; line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">&bull;<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp; </span>Conservation of potable water and expansion of agriculture.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="margin-left: 14.15pt; text-align: justify; line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">&bull; Development of non-conventional water sources, such as desalination</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"> of </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">watershed </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>water, </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">purification of sewage </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>(</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">sewage), heavy water and agricultural drainage and reuse in irrigation of agricultural crops without harming human, animal and plant health.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="margin-left: 14.15pt; text-align: justify; line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">&bull; Reducing the need for synthetic fertilizers due to the presence of necessary elements in that treated water.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="margin-left: 14.15pt; text-align: justify; line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">&bull; Increase the availability of water for drinking, cleaning, irrigation and domestic uses andreduce over-extraction of groundwater.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="margin-left: 14.15pt; text-align: justify; line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">&bull; <span style="mso-tab-count: 1;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Reduce nutrient loads to river water, canals and other surface water resources.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="margin-left: 14.15pt; text-align: justify; line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">&bull; <span style="mso-tab-count: 1;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Reduce manufacturing costs to use high-quality reclaimed water and increase agricultural production.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="margin-left: 14.15pt; text-align: justify; line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">&bull;<span style="mso-tab-count: 1;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span>Promote environmental protection by preserving wetlands and ponds.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="text-align: justify; line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Egypt has state-of-the-art water research centers specialized in river hydrology and the development of </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>irrigation and water supply systems, </span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">so Egypt has come a long way in building water treatment plants, reusing wastewater and building dams to harvest rainwater.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="text-align: justify; line-height: 150%;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Iraq can benefit from this Egyptian expertise in dealing with the country's</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="mso-ansi-language: EN;"> acute water shortages."</span></span><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;"> Through the following points: -</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpFirst" dir="LTR" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in; line-height: 150%; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><!-- [if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">1.<span style="font: 7.0pt 'Times New Roman';">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">Egypt provides a number of training courses for specialists from the Iraqi side in the fields of construction and maintenance of rainwater harvesting dams, numerical mathematical models, rational management of groundwater, monitoring and control systems for groundwater reservoirs .</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpMiddle" dir="LTR" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in; line-height: 150%; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><!-- [if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">2.<span style="font: 7.0pt 'Times New Roman';">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span>Cooperation in the preparation of joint research and studies and the promotion of joint scientific research in the field of reuse of agricultural drainage water, protection of beaches, weed removal from waterways, interference of salty seawater with fresh water, removal of the Nile rose in Iraq and benefit from it.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoListParagraphCxSpLast" dir="LTR" style="text-align: justify; text-indent: -.25in; line-height: 150%; mso-list: l0 level1 lfo1;"><span style="mso-bookmark: _Hlk109310641;"><!-- [if !supportLists]--><span style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-fareast-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi;"><span style="mso-list: Ignore;">3.<span style="font: 7.0pt 'Times New Roman';">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span></span></span><!--[endif]--><span lang="EN" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; mso-ansi-language: EN;">In the field of implementation of pilot projects, it was agreed that Egypt would provide technical advice for the implementation of a forecasting and early warning system in the State of Iraq, the use of satellite images to calculate irrigation efficiency and the use of a soil moisture measuring device, as well as the Egyptian side to provide technical support for the implementation of a pilot experiment to establish a telemetric monitoring network to monitor water data in one of the projects or directorates of water resources in Iraq.</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="text-align: justify; line-height: 150%;"><span dir="RTL" lang="AR-SA" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi;"><span style="mso-tab-count: 1;">&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp; </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">&nbsp;</span></span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="text-align: justify; line-height: 150%;"><span dir="RTL" lang="AR-SA" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi;">&nbsp;</span></p>
<p class="MsoNormal" dir="LTR" style="text-align: justify; line-height: 150%;"><span dir="RTL" lang="AR-SA" style="font-size: 14.0pt; line-height: 150%; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; mso-ascii-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-fareast-font-family: 'Times New Roman'; mso-hansi-theme-font: major-bidi; mso-bidi-theme-font: major-bidi;">&nbsp;</span></p>