Analysis of discursive mechanisms to solve the drought problem in Sistan

Iran has been facing a severe water crisis for the past few decades. The Helmand River basin, which stretches from southwestern Afghanistan to eastern Iran, has been the site of ongoing disputes between the two countries for nearly a century, but these tensions have become more prominent in recent years, following the expansion of the water crisis in Iran and the construction of a dam upstream in Afghanistan. While our research literature suggests that transboundary water resources in the Helmand River basin have been politicized and even securitized by Iran, no study has examined how Iranian government officials have considered water as a political and security issue. This study responds to this gap by analyzing Persian-language news articles from 2001 to 2019 that contain statements by Iranian officials related to the Helmand River basin, identifying the themes and discursive mechanisms behind the politicization and securitization of this issue. According to the theory of securitization, a significant proportion of these articles contained a securitization movement, the majority of which was carried out by local officials and parliamentarians. This suggests that securitization has been largely a local phenomenon and reflects broader internal tensions over the framing of water relations with Afghanistan among Iranian officials. Another key theme throughout the discourse analysis process has been the linkage between human and environmental systems, which is created by the importance of transboundary water resources through their connection to society. This study suggests that spatial scale, water scarcity, and socio-political context are importa