Ukraine and Syria have agreed to restore full diplomatic representation in each other's capitals, Foreign Minister Andriy Sybiha announced on the evening of 5 April, following a series of meetings in Damascus during President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's first official visit to the country.
Trade ninefold up since ties restored; embassies to follow
Sybiga met his Syrian counterpart, Asaad Hassan al-Shaibani, to discuss the embassy reopening alongside plans for broader cooperation in trade, education, and humanitarian affairs. "We have agreed to restore the work of embassies in Kyiv and Damascus in the near future — this is an important step in strengthening our partnership," Sybiha said.
The diplomatic upgrade comes against a backdrop of rapid economic normalization. Since Ukraine and Syria restored diplomatic relations in September 2025, bilateral trade has grown ninefold, Sybiha reported.
The two ministers also addressed security, which Sybiha described as interconnected between Europe and the Middle East. The talks covered the Russia-Ukraine war, ongoing negotiations, and post-war reconstruction. Zelenskyy noted a mutual appetite for deeper defence ties: "There is great interest in the exchange of military and security experience."
Why ties broke — and why they are being rebuilt
Kyiv severed diplomatic relations with Damascus in 2022 after Syrian president Bashar Assad recognized the so-called independence of Russia-occupied territories in the Donetsk and Luhansk oblasts. Syrian rebels toppled Assad in December 2024; he fled to Russia. Since then, Western sanctions on Syria have begun to lift and international companies are preparing to return to the country.
For Syria, the strategic calculus now includes the security situation generated by the US-Israeli military campaign against Iran. Ukraine, which has accumulated extensive experience countering Iranian drone and missile attacks, is positioning itself as a partner for Gulf and Levantine states facing similar threats. Ukraine signed a defence cooperation agreement with Saudi Arabia on 27 March 2026 and an agreement with Qatar the following day covering air-threat countermeasures.
Ukraine, Syria, Türkiye hold trilateral talks
The Damascus visit produced more than bilateral results. Zelenskyy confirmed that a trilateral meeting — Ukraine, Syria, and Türkiye — took place on 5 April alongside bilateral sessions with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa. Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan flew to Damascus together with the Ukrainian delegation.
"An important day of negotiations in Damascus — today there was a bilateral format with Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa, negotiations with our teams, and there was a trilateral conversation — Ukraine, Syria, Türkiye. We are building new relations, new opportunities, and expanding work for the sake of security," Zelenskyy said.
The three-way talks covered security and defence, the regional situation in light of developments around Iran, and energy and infrastructure cooperation. Zelenskyy said food security also featured prominently: "We will continue work on food security as well. We spoke in detail about how to overcome the consequences of war, and about the negotiation process regarding Russia's war against our state and our people."
Zelenskyy had visited Türkiye on 4 April, where he met President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and, according to both sides, agreed on new steps in Kyiv-Ankara security cooperation.
