Turkey and Middle East water negotiations

The Turkish English language daily Turkish Daily News said on Friday that the Turkish Foreign Ministry stressed that the only participation for Turkey concerning the question of water between Syria and Israel is to sell water to the region.

The paper said the Turkish reaction came following the recent statements made by the spokesman for the US State Department, James Rubin, in which he indicated the possibility of Turkey's participation in the talks between Israel and Syria concerning the question of water.

The paper quoted a diplomat at the Turkish Foreign Ministry as saying in a statement to the paper that the only thing that Turkey can do to back the peace process is to sell water to the countries in need.

The Turkish diplomat stated that waters which are to be sold will be from the rivers of Manaogat, Seihan and Jeihan which are all Turkish rivers which do not cross the borders, stressing that the question of selling waters from the Tigris and the Euphrates has not been discussed so far.

The Turkish official reiterated Turkey's stand which says there is no link between the Middle East peace process and the Turkish waters. He added, "All that we can talk about is selling the waters from the rivers of Manaogat, Seihan and Jeihan, and it pleases Turkey that selling the waters will contribute to achieving stability and prosperity in the region. "It is just a mere trade case," he said.

The paper reported that the officials at the Turkish Foreign Ministry conveyed this message to the US and that Washington has realized fully the Turkish position towards water.

For its part, the Turkish paper said that water is one of the main four issues in the peace talks between Israel and Syria and that Syria wants Israel to withdraw from the Golan Heights which is rich in water resources.