Link to article: https://www.reuters.com/world/syrias-de-facto-leader-hosts-ukraines-foreign-minister-sana-says-2024-12-30/
On December 30, 2024, Syria’s new foreign minister Asaad Hassan al-Shibani met with his Ukrainian counterpart Andrii Sybiha to discuss new ties between the two countries. Recently, as a result of the 14 year civil war in Syria, its old ruler Bashar al-Assad has been ousted and sought asylum in Russia because they had been close allies that had worked closely together. The new ruling party in Syria, led by Ahmed al-Sharaa, is now more aligned with Ukraine and is seeking to build a bond with them while decreasing Russian influence in the country. The two countries intend to strategically intertwine by political, economic, social and scientific means. This is starting with a delivery of 500 metric tons of flour given to Syria as part of Ukraine’s “Grain from Ukraine” initiative. This partnership has the goal of creating more stability and peace for both countries which have been a part of separate conflicts for multiple years. This grain is important because under Assad’s reign, Syria’s grain came from Russia. There is to be new discussions between Syrian and Russian leaders over what common interests the two countries have and what the fate of Russian military bases in Syria will be.
I think this is very important for this region because not only is there a power change in Syria, it also changes outside influence and alliances of outside countries. The influence of Russia in a country, especially in the Middle East, where many countries have trading with Ukraine instead of Russia, can create a big difference for Syria. Now, with Syria more aligned with Ukraine, that means a much different sphere of influence and alliances since Ukraine and Russia are on separate sides of a major conflict. I think Syria getting grain from Ukraine will grow their partnerships with other Middle Eastern countries who have a similar relationship with Ukraine.
I expect that Syria will respond to this event by not continuing to take grain shipments from Russia and to slowly make the Russian military bases inactive. I think that they will give back to Ukraine what they can, whether that is food or other resources and attempt to strengthen this new relationship so that they can feel more stable and create different alliances. I expect Ukraine to continue to give grain to Syria as long as it is in their national interest to help to create more peace for the two countries. This connects to class because it shows the Fluidity of Alliances and how the change in government of one country can change the alliances and partnerships of other countries.