Up to 30% of Amu Darya's water flow to Afghanistan: Risks for Kazakhstan

“In a long-term perspective, we understand that, of course, there will be a decrease in the flow of the Syr Darya River. All this will affect our long-suffering Aral Sea,” he said.

According to him, the impact of the new water canal will be felt [in Kazakhstan - edit], despite there is no direct border between Kazakhstan and Afghanistan.

“We do not share border with Afghanistan, but we understand, that the water volume that they will take, of course, will have an overall impact in the future,”Abdraimov said.

Afghanistan may divert up to 30% of the flow of the Amu Darya River

Chairman of Baitaq Party Azamatkhan Amirtayev revealed the potential risks of building the new canal in Afghanistan. In his words, redistribution of water along the Qosh Tepa Canal will affect not only Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan, but also Kazakhstan.

“We do not want to criticize. Today we have invited both Kazakhstani and foreign scholars, who will advise us how to make the canal effective. We want to work together with them. It is a common problem,” he noted.

He said the problem is that around 25-50% of water resources of Amu Darya will be diverted to the new canal of Afghanistan.

“It means that Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan will receive less water. Consequently, Uzbekistan may use more water from Syr Darya, which means less water will flow to Kazakhstan. Water flow from Uzbekistan may even decrease by 30-40%. Only joint work is needed here. There is a problem, and it needs to be addressed,” he stressed.

Development of joint solutions on prevention of possible water scarcity and environmental crisis in the region is the goal of the international conference “Water Security and Trans-Border Water Use: Challenges and Solutions” (ARAL Summit) ongoing in Astana today.

Among the invitees are the representatives of the embassies of Turkiye, israelm Tajikistan, Kyrgyzstan, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, as well as relevant ministries and departments.

Read more here on what risks and challenges the Afghan megaproject poses for Central Asia, and whether it is possible to find a mutually beneficial solution to this issue to avoid catastrophic consequences .