TURKEY’S TRANSBOUNDARY WATER POLICY: DOMINANCE OF THE REALIST PARADIGM? A THESIS SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE SCHOOL OF SOCIAL SCIENCES OF MIDDLE EAST TECHNICAL UNIVERSITY BY FUNDA YAKAR IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF MASTER OF SCIENCE IN MIDDLE EAST STUDIES AUGUST 2013 Approval of the Graduate School of Social Sciences Prof.Dr. Meliha B. ALTUNIŞIK Director I certify that this thesis satisfies all the requirements as a thesis for the degree of Master of Science. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Özlem TÜR Head of Department This is to certify that we have read this thesis and that in our opinion it is fully adequate, in scope and quality, as a thesis for the degree of Master of Science. Prof. Dr. Süha BÖLÜKBAŞIOĞLU Supervisor Examining Committee Members Assist. Prof. Dr. Emre ALP (METU, ENVE) Prof. Dr. Süha BÖLÜKBAŞIOĞLU (METU, IR) Assoc. Prof. Dr. Oktay F. TANRISEVER (METU, IR) I hereby declare that all information in this document has been obtained and presented in accordance with academic rules and ethical conduct. I also declare that, as required by these rules and conduct, I have fully cited and referenced all material and results that are not original to this work. Name, Last name : Funda YAKAR Signature : iii ABSTRACT TURKEY’S TRANSBOUNDARY WATER POLICY: DOMINANCE OF THE REALIST PARADIGM? Yakar, Funda M.Sc., Department of Middle East Studies Supervisor : Prof. Dr. Süha Bölükbaşıoğlu August 2013, 109 pages Water is the most vital natural resource on the earth both for human and other species to survive. However, water is a scarce resource like other natural resources. Along with its essentiality for living things and natural life, water has been a key element for development in recent years. Rapid population growth, industrialization, global warming and climate change exacerbate water scarcity and water related conflicts especially in arid and semi-arid parts of the world. Therefore, water problem increasingly dominates international relations and foreign politics of countries which brings about the exigency of water politics. This thesis focuses on Turkey’s transboundary water policy and aims to examine to what extent realism, one of the grand theories of the international relations discipline, is dominant on Turkish transboundary water politics. Realist paradigm is dominant over Turkey’s transboundary water politics; however, there are a certain number of exceptions. Keywords: Turkey’s Transboundary Water Policy, Water Politics, International Relations, Realism, Realist Paradigm iv ÖZ TÜRKİYE’NİN SINIRAŞAN SU POLİTİKASI: REALİST PARADİGMANIN ETKİSİ? Yakar, Funda Yüksek Lisans, Ortadoğu Araştırmaları Bölümü Tez Yöneticisi : Prof. Dr. Süha Bölükbaşıoğlu Ağustos 2013, 109 sayfa Su, hem insanlar hem de diğer canlı türleri için en vazgeçilmez doğal kaynaktır. Ne var ki, diğer doğal kaynaklar gibi su da kısıtlı bir kaynaktır. Canlılar ve doğal yaşam için vazgeçilmez oluşunun yanında su, son yıllarda kalkınmanın da vazgeçilmez bir unsuru haline gelmiştir. Hızlı nüfus artışı, sanayileşme, küresel ısınma ve iklim değişikliği özellikle dünyanın kurak ve yarı kurak bölgelerinde su kıtlığını ve suyla ilgili çatışmaları şiddetlendirmiştir. Bu nedenle su sorunları, uluslararası ilişkilere ve devletlerin dış politikalarına yöne vermekte giderek daha etkili olmaya başlamış ve bu durum su politikalarının gerekliliğini beraberinde getirmiştir. Bu tez, Türkiye’nin sınıraşan su politikalarına odaklanmakta ve uluslararası ilişkiler disiplininin başat paradigmalarından realizmin Türkiye’nin sınıraşan su politikaları üzerinde ne derece etkili olduğunu irdelemeyi amaçlamaktadır. Realist paradigma, Türkiye’nin sınıraşan su politikaları üzerinde etkilidir, ancak belli sayıda istisna söz konusudur. Anahtar Kelimeler: Türkiye’nin Sınıraşan Su Politikası, Su Politikaları, Uluslararası İlişkiler, Realizm, Realist Paradigma v To My Parents vi ACKNOWLEDGMENTS The author wishes to express her deepest gratitude to her supervisor Prof. Dr. Süha BÖLÜKBAŞIOĞLU for his guidance, advice, criticism, encouragements and insight throughout the research. The author would also like to thank to the other examining committee members; Assoc. Prof. Dr. Oktay F. TANRISEVER and Assist. Prof. Dr. Emre ALP. Their valuable comments, suggestions and contributions to the thesis are highly appreciated. The author also feels deeply indebted to her master Salim FAKIOGLU, head for Water Law and Water Policy Department of Ministry of Forestry and Water Affairs. Being a previous DSI official and having forty years of water management experience, his comments, contributions and deepest understanding throughout the study are gratefully acknowledged. The author would like to acknowledge her family for their support and encouragement, with special mention for her mother. The love, compassion and understanding her mother Hatice has provided her entire life has made this thesis possible. vii TABLE OF CONTENTS PLAGIARISM………………………………………………….……....…….iii ABSTRACT…………………………………………………………...…..…iv ÖZ……………………………………………………………………..…....…v DEDICATION…………………………………………………………......…vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS……………………………………………........vii TABLE OF CONTENTS……………………………………………….......viii LIST OF TABLES……………………………………………………...……..x LIST OF FIGURES…………………………………………………….….…xi LIST OF ABBREVATIONS…………………………………………….......xii CHAPTER 1. INTRODUCTION................................................................................1 2. REALIST THEORY OF INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS............11 2.1 Emergence of International Relations as a Separate Discipline.........................................................................................11 2.2 Realism......................................................................................15 2.2.1 Power……....................................………………....31 2.3 Structural Realism……………………...……………....…......33 3. TURKEY’S TRANSBOUNDARY RIVER BASINS………………38 3.1 Introduction……..……………………...…………………...…38 3.2 Meric River Basin……………………………………………..40 3.2.1 Hydrology, Geography, Climate and Water Uses....42 3.2.2 Transboundary Water Relations in the Meric River Basin…………………………………………………..…46 3.3 Coruh River Basin…………………………………………….50 3.3.1 Hydrology, Geography, Climate and Water Uses....51 3.3.2 Transboundary Water Relations in the Coruh River Basin…………………………………………………......55 viii 3.4 Kura-Aras River Basin…….………………………………….57 3.4.1 Hydrology, Geography, Climate and Water Uses...58 3.4.2 Transboundary Water Relations in the Kura-Aras River Basin………………….…………………………...62 3.5 Euphrates-Tigris Rivers System….…………………………...65 3.5.1 Hydrology, Geography, Climate and Water Uses....68 3.5.2 Transboundary Water Relations in the Euphrates- Tigris River Basin……….………….…….……………...72 3.6 Orontes River Basin…….……..…..…………………………..81 3.6.1 Hydrology, Geography, Climate and Water Uses....83 3.6.2 Transboundary Water Relations in the Orontes River Basin………………………………………………..........86 4. CONCLUSION...................................................................................92 BIBLIOGRAPHY...…………………………………………………..…….100 APPENDIX: Tez Fotokopisi İzin Formu............................................................ ix LIST OF TABLES TABLES Table 1 Turkey’s Transboundary River Basins: Mean Annual Discharges and Contributions of Riparians …………………………………………………...……40 Table 2 Distribution of Meric River Basin Area Between Riparians………………43 Table 3 Mean Annual Discharge of Meric River Basin and Contributions of Riparians……………………………………………………………………………44 Table 4 Mean Annual Discharge of Meric River Basin and Contributions of Riparians……………………………………………………………………………46 Table 5 Agreements and Protocols Between Greece and Turkey…….…………....48 Table 6 Hydro-geographic Data of Coruh River Basin…………………………….52 Table 7 Distribution of Kura-Aras River Basin Area Between the Rparians……...59 Table 8 Catchment Areas of Euphrates and Tigris…………………………………68 Table 9 Mean Annual Discharges and Contributions of Riparians in Euphrates and Tigris Rivers………………………………………………….………………….…69 Table 10 Mean Annual Discharge and Catchment Area of Orontes River Basin….84 x LIST OF FIGURES FIGURES Figure 1 Turkey’s Transboundary Rivers…………………………………..……...39 Figure 2 Catchment Areas of Turkey’s Transboundary River Basins………....…..39 Figure 3 Map of Meric River Basin………...……………………………….……..41 Figure 4 Map of Coruh River Basin……...………………………………………...51 Figure 5 Transverse Section Layout of The Coruh Development Plan……………54 Figure 6 Map of Kura-Aras River Basin…………………………………………...58 Figure 7 Map of Euphrates-Tigris River Basin……...………………………….….67 Figure 8 Map of Orontes River………...……………………………………….….82 xi LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS BCM Billion Cubic Meters DSI Devlet Su Isleri (General Directorate of State Hydraulic Works),Turkey EU European Union GAP Guneydogu Anadolu Projesi (Southeastern Anatolia Project), Turkey GEF Global Environment Facility GDP Gross Domestic Product GWh Gigawatt per hour ICPDR International Commission for the Protection of the Danube River INWEB International Network of Water Environment Centres for the Balkans JTC Joint Technical Committee kW Kilowatt kWh Kilowatt per hour MCM Million Cubic Metres MW Megawatt NATO North Atlantic Treaty Organization PKK Partiya Karkeren Kurdistan (Kurdistan Worker’s Party) UN United Nations UNDP United Nations Development Programme UNECE United Nations Economic Commission for Europe UNEP United Nations Environment Programme USSR Union of Soviet Socialist Republics WFD Water Framework Directive, EU xii CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION Water is an irreplaceable element for both human beings and other species