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Ukraine and Syria have agreed to reopen their respective embassies in Kyiv and Damascus in the coming weeks, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha announced Sunday following high-level talks in the Syrian capital that also included a landmark visit by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Sybiha met with his Syrian counterpart, Foreign Minister Asaad Hassan al-Shaibani, to discuss a broad diplomatic agenda spanning security, trade, logistics, and food security. The two countries signed a joint communique restoring diplomatic relations in September 2025, and Sybiha said bilateral trade has since grown ninefold, with Kyiv eyeing further expansion.
"The security of Europe and the Middle East is interlinked," Sybiha wrote on X following the meeting.
Zelenskyy, on his first visit to Damascus, separately met with Syrian President Ahmad al-Sharaa. The two leaders agreed to deepen cooperation on security and development. Zelenskyy said the talks covered the state of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Ukraine's role as a regional food supplier, and Syria's current energy and infrastructure challenges.
"We are ready to work together to expand opportunities for both our countries and their people," Zelenskyy wrote on X.
The ministerial talks placed particular emphasis on economic connectivity. Sybiha said the two sides discussed developing trade and maritime routes with, in his words, "strong potential to deepen economic cooperation."
Food security emerged as a key area, with Ukraine signaling readiness to contribute through its existing Grain from Ukraine initiative, a program Kyiv has used to channel agricultural exports to food-insecure nations.
Beyond trade, Sybiha highlighted the depth of human ties between the two countries, noting that many Syrian students have studied, and continue to study, in Ukraine. He described this as a "strong foundation we intend to build on" as the two governments pursue expanded humanitarian and educational cooperation.
Ukraine cut diplomatic ties with Syria in 2022 after the government of then-President Bashar al-Assad recognized the Russian-proclaimed breakaway republics of Donetsk and Luhansk in eastern Ukraine, a move that aligned Damascus with Moscow at a pivotal moment in the conflict.
Assad was ousted in late 2024 after a rapid offensive by rebel forces, and the new Syrian leadership under al-Sharaa has since pursued a markedly different foreign policy orientation. The September 2025 communique marked the formal beginning of the two countries' rapprochement, and Sunday's meetings signal a significant acceleration of that process.
The two ministers agreed to continue working toward what Sybiha called a "lasting peace" for both the Ukrainian and Syrian peoples.
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