Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced on January 2, 2025, that Kyiv is preparing to resume diplomatic relations with Syria, following a visit to the war-torn country by Ukraine’s Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha and Agriculture Minister Vitaliy Koval, as reported by several news agencies. Their visit comes less than a month after the ousting of Syria’s long-time president Bashar al-Assad, a close ally of Russia. During their trip, Ukraine sent a shipment of food aid as part of the humanitarian "Grain from Ukraine" initiative in cooperation with the UN World Food Programme.

Zelensky confirmed that Ukraine plans to renew cooperation with Syria in international organizations and strengthen ties with the new Syrian leadership. Ukraine severed diplomatic relations with Syria in June 2022 after the Assad regime recognized the independence of Russian-occupied regions in Ukraine's Donetsk and Luhansk. However, following Assad’s removal, Ukraine has shifted its focus to building relations with the new Islamist government that took power in Syria last month.

Zelensky also revealed that Ukraine aims to increase trade with Lebanon and double its agriculture exports, which currently total around $400 million. Ukraine is sending 500 tonnes of wheat flour to Syria, providing resources for approximately 167,000 Syrians for one month. Koval emphasized that this will not be a one-time shipment, as Syria is interested in future deliveries of oil, sugar, and meat.

Meanwhile, in Moldova’s breakaway region of Transdniestria, industry has come to a halt due to a disruption in Russian gas supplies. On January 1, 2025, Russia ceased its gas deliveries through Ukraine to Transdniestria, which has led to the closure of all industrial operations, except for food production. The region, predominantly Russian-speaking, relies heavily on Russian energy supplies, and authorities warned that the gas reserves would last only 10 days in the northern parts. The southern areas have slightly more reserves, but the situation remains dire.

Transdniestria, which declared independence after the Soviet Union’s collapse in the 1990s, has been under strain since the disruption. Local officials have already implemented measures like reducing heating and hot water supply to households. Transdniestria’s power plants have switched from gas to coal to ensure electricity is available for the coming months, though the region’s energy crisis is far from resolved.

This shortage underscores the broader impact of the end of Russian gas transit to Europe, which has been a significant geopolitical shift. President Zelensky has hailed this cut-off as one of Russia's biggest defeats, while Russia blames the United States and Ukraine for the economic fallout. As the energy crisis in Transdniestria unfolds, the region's reliance on Russian energy highlights its vulnerability in the wake of Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine.