Water Diplomacy and Its Strategic Significance for Sustainable Development Goals and Global Security Architecture

Abstract

This article presents new approaches to water diplomacy connected with the United Nations 2030 Agenda. The research question is what is the role and significance of water diplomacy for Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and global security architecture? The paper is based on the theory of interdependence. To illustrate this concept, the author used several case studies to identify the international security role of water diplomacy in the context of SDGs. The case studies point to the greater likelihood that wars in the twenty-first century will be due to freshwater disputes; water diplomacy should be a crucial instrument for the SDGs implementation. Water diplomacy has the potential to become an effective platform for international cooperation in the face of many current and future global water challenges. Water diplomacy combines preventive and reactive measures, as well as the mediation and implementation of solutions. It is crucial for regional and world security. The results of this paper show future research directions on water diplomacy.

Land, Water, and Climate Issues in Large and Megacities under the Lens of Nuclear Science: An Approach for Achieving Sustainable Development Goal (SDG11)

“…They also place the dynamic impacts balance of natural ecosystems at risk, contributing to the loss of their benefits and biodiversity [5][6][7]. This mainly affects water ecosystem services, which support all ecosystem services and are directly related to human well-being and global policies for development [2,3,13,14,16,31,49,[68][69][70][71][72]. Figure 1 presents the level of dependence of support, provision, regulation, and cultural ES regarding water ES, as well as the connections between these services and the components of human well-being.…”

“…Water scarcity refers to the restriction of water both for human activities and for the maintenance of vital processes in nature, and it is determined by four main factors: (i) a decrease in normal rainfall levels; (ii) natural environmental capacity to store water in the soil, subsoil, and in water bodies (related to the characteristics of coverage, use, and occupation of land and geological and pedological aspects of each region); (iii) the capacity to store rainwater in reservoirs; and (iv) demand, linked to water consumption for different purposes. The relationship and synergy between these factors are the main components of water scarcity in a given region and period of time, making it crucial to incorporate the ecosystem dimension in water crises in large urban settlements around the world [30,68,70]. Water scarcity refers to the restriction of water both for human activities and for the maintenance of vital processes in nature, and it is determined by four main factors: (i) a decrease in normal rainfall levels; (ii) natural environmental capacity to store water in the soil, subsoil, and in water bodies (related to the characteristics of coverage, use, and occupation of land and geological and pedological aspects of each region); (iii) the capacity to store rainwater in reservoirs; and (iv) demand, linked to water consumption for An analysis of water demand and supply in 12 large cities and megacities has revealed a deficit in 11 of them, which altogether affect up to 178 million inhabitants-Cairo (Egypt); Delhi, Kolkata, and Mumbai (India); Dhaka (Bangladesh); Ho Chi Minh (Vietnam); Jakarta (Indonesia); Lagos (Nigeria); Lahore (Pakistan); Mexico City (Mexico); and Tehran (Iran).…”

Characteristics and features of Kazakhstan’s water security policy

“…Thus, to assess the impact of economic activity on river runoff and changes in climatic conditions, a set of different methods should be used and appropriate techniques should be developed. According to Krzymowski (2021), this approach would allow for the most accurate and coordinated control of all processes regarding the dynamics of changes in the state's water resources, their growth and quality indicators, especially in the context of sustainable development goals. Hamidov et al (2022) suggest that in socioecological systems, the management of natural resources can be characterized by compromises between sectors and sustainable development goals.…”

“…In the process of analyzing the existing problems in the field of water security in Kazakhstan, it can be stated that the probability of serious conflicts and armed clashes based on access to water or uneven use of river sources by different states of the region is not high (Krzymowski, 2021). If there are some problems with Kyrgyzstan and Uzbekistan and local disputes with Tajikistan, conflict issues are very successfully resolved through negotiations and the signing of bilateral agreements.…”