|
|
General Assembly Resolution 53-22
Committee: UN Environmental Programme
Topic: Water Scarcity in the Middle East-North African region
Acknowledging the the Tigris and Euphrates rivers begin in Turkey;
Mindful of the responsibility of any government to assist in the economic development of its people;
Aware of Turkey’s "Greater Anatolia Project" (GAP) which is one of the largest water infrastructure projects in history, and that this project is expected to generate 7460 megawatts of electricity, and that it will add 1.7 million hectares or irrigated land to Turkey’s farmland;
Taking into consideration that the GAP will result in less water reaching the countries of Iraq and Syria;
Noting with concern that Iraqi and Syrian demand for water is rising rapidly because they have the two fastest growing populations in the ME-NA region - both with population doubling times of just 17 years;
Cognizant of the fact that both Iraq and Syria have warned Turkey about continuing with this project, and have gone so far as to suggest that they may war with Turkey if Turkey further develops the GAP;
Mindful of Syria’s giving refuge to Kurdish terrorists who commit acts of terror in Turkey and then retreat to Syria; acts of terror designed to convince Turkey to create an independent Kurdistan in southeastern Turkey for the 12 million Kurdish people who live there;
Firmly believing that the people of southeastern Turkey can be better helped through economic development of the region through the furtherance of the GAP;
Additionally cognizant of Iraq’s threat to bomb Turkish bases used by the US/NATO in order to patrol the no-fly zone in northern Iraq;
1. Affirms the fact that upstream countries have sovereignty over the water that flows through their country; that Turkey has the right to dam the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, if they do so desire;
2. Calls upon the governments of Iraq and Syria to actively support birth control measures in their countries to slow down their rapid population growth, and eventually decrease their demand for water;
3. Urges Iraq and Syria to refrain from any procative actions to inhibit the development of the Greater Anatolian Project