Syria severs ties with Ukraine, after Kyiv takes similar step

The Syrian regime today announced that it was severing diplomatic relations with Kyiv weeks after Ukraine took the same step following the Syrian regime’s recognition of the independence of the pro-Russian separatist republics of Donetsk and Lugansk.

According to the official Syrian news agency SANA, a source in the Syrian Foreign Ministry saidL “The Syrian Arab Republic has decided to break diplomatic relations with Ukraine in conformity with the principle of reciprocity and in response to the decision of the Ukrainian government.”

On 29 June Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that “relations between Ukraine and Syria have ended,” noting that “the pressures of sanctions on Damascus will intensify.”

His decision came hours after Syria announced its recognition of the independence of the separatist republics of Donetsk and Lugansk, becoming the first country to do so after Russia, which recognised them on 21 February before the start of its invasion of Ukraine three days later.

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Moscow is one of Damascus’ most prominent supporters, and since the start of the conflict in 2011 has provided it with military, economic and diplomatic support, especially at the UN Security Council, where it vetoed several draft resolutions condemning the Syrian regime. Its military intervention in Syria since September 2015 contributed to shifting the balance of power in the conflict in favour of the Syrian army, enabling it to regain control over large areas.