Northeast

Syria formally concluded the replacement of its old banknotes on July 30, bringing to an end a seven-month nationwide currency replacement process. As a result, all denominations of the old Syrian currency have officially ceased to be legal tender in the market. Since January, approximately 95 percent of the old currency has been replaced. The replacement process has exposed several structural problems, such as the shortage of smaller banknote denominations, and difficulties in implementing the replacement process in areas of the northeast and the Suweida Governorate.

Over a month after the Kurdish-led administration that governed large swathes of the northeast imploded, the integration of civilian structures from the now-dissolved Autonomous Administration in North and East Syria (AANES) into the central state apparatus remains underway. Damascus has kick-started the process of integrating the civil administration with a focus on the health, education, agriculture, and aviation sectors. Preparations are also underway to complete the electoral process for the parliamentary elections in Hassakeh, Raqqa, and the Kobani region.

Following the Syrian government’s takeover of the Raqqa and Deir-ez-Zor governorates and parts of the southern countryside of the Hassakeh governorate, Damascus has regained access to the core of Syria’s oil and gas wealth. A source at the Syrian Petroleum Company explained that oil production west of the Euphrates stood at 10,600 barrels of oil per day (bopd), and that, following the takeover of fields in the northeast, production has increased to 26,000 bopd, but could reach 45,000 bopd in a few months, pending maintenance works.  

In the areas that fell under the control of Damascus in recent days - the eastern flank of the governorates of Raqqa and Deir-ez-Zor, and the southern countryside of Hassakeh - state officials have accelerated the handover in the civilian, judicial, industrial, energy, health and financial sectors.

In the span of two weeks, the geopolitical and military landscape in Syria has been upended, with Damascus taking the entirety of the Raqqa and Deir-ez-Zor governorates and advancing in the southern Hassakeh countryside, de facto putting an end to the Autonomous Administration in North and East Syria (AANES).

Several CMPO officials delve into the state of affairs of forex companies, the impact of the closure of state-owned banks after the fall of the regime, their concerns regarding the Cham Cash app, the liquidity shortages, the prospective arrival of two e-payment companies to the northeast, and how the freeze in negotiations between the Autonomous Administration in North and East Syria (AANES) and Damascus is hampering investor interest in the financial sector.

In the Autonomous Administration in North and East Syria (AANES) region, energy needs stand at around 1,340 megawatts (MW), but local production, from the Suweidiyeh and Jbeisse power plants and the two power plants at the Euphrates and Tishreen dam, only generates between 150 and 175 MW, several AANES officials told The Syria Report. 

In the first half of 2025, revenues of the Autonomous Administration in North and East Syria (AANES) stood at USD 542.42 million, while expenditures totalled USD 321.08 million, leaving a budget surplus of USD 221.34 million, according to the financial reports for the first and second quarters obtained exclusively by The Syria Report. According to the reports, the AANES had projected spending USD 250 million in wheat procurement, but they did not; this should be taken into consideration when analysing the surplus figure of USD 221.34 million recorded in the first half of the year.

The Autonomous Administration in North and East Syria (AANES) has an extensive programme of subsidies; the key ones relate to oil products and bread, but there are also grants for families of martyrs, grants to cover student costs, a programme to subsidise medicines, and direct cash aid for internally displaced people (IDPs).

Traders and industrialists in the Autonomous Administration in North and East Syria (AANES) areas have faced higher transportation costs in the past two months when importing goods due to the decision of the Transitional Government to close the internal crossings between the central government and AANES areas. Most traders were importing goods from Turkey via Aleppo, but are now forced to resort to a long detour via Deir-ez-Zor or to use the emerging smuggling routes via Ras Al-Ayn or Tal Abyad.

In this interview, the Co-Chair of the Autonomous Administration in North and East Syria (AANES), Shawki Mohammad, details the key obstacles the region faces in attracting investments, talks about the fate of state-owned institutions in the northeast, and comments on the agricultural sector.

The negotiations between Syria’s transitional government and the Autonomous Administration in North and East Syria (AANES) have reached a deadlock. This article explores how the northeast authorities face the points of contention of this integration process that could determine whether Syria leaves behind years of conflict or veers into a new violent chapter.

In an interview with The Syria Report conducted in the headquarters of the Finance Authority in Raqqa, the Co-Chair of the Autonomous Administration in North and East Syria (AANES) Finance Authority, Ahmad Youssef, talks about the AANES budget, the evolution of oil revenues, the tax system, the size of their subsidy programme, and key challenges for investment.

As the 2025 cotton harvest season draws to a close in the territories administered by the Autonomous Administration in North and East Syria (AANES), farmers in the region face mounting challenges. Cotton, traditionally planted in April and harvested in September, has long held an important place in Syria’s agricultural history. However, this year’s purchase price set by AANES of USD 600 per metric tonne - the same as in 2024 - has stirred resentment among producers struggling with rising costs and difficult climatic conditions.

Since Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS) assumed authority in Syria last December, many have questioned the capacity of the country’s new leadership — emerging from an Islamist ideological background — to socially and politically unite the country after years of armed conflict. While the level of chaos has been considerably lower than initially feared after the fall of the regime, the overall performance of the new authorities, particularly in areas with significant religious and ethnic minority populations, has raised questions. Recent developments, including the terrorist bombing of Mar Elias Church in Damascus’ Duwailaa suburb and the absence of any tangible progress in the negotiations with the Kurdish-led Autonomous Administration in North and East Syria (AANES), have led some to doubt the new authorities’ ability to achieve the broader objective of Syrian unification.

The Syrian government’s purchase of wheat from its farmers is at its lowest volume in decades, which pushed it to raise its procurement prices to up to twice global levels.

Following the recent easing of sanctions against Syria by the United States, the United Kingdom and the European Union, British oil company Gulfsands is laying the ground to return to Syria. “There are no material sanctions restrictions that would prevent our return to operations,” John Bell, CEO of Gulfsands, told The Syria Report. 

Syria is facing one of the most severe food security crises in its modern history, as an acute drought in 2025 threatens to decimate the domestic wheat harvest, traditionally a cornerstone of the country's agricultural output. A source at the Ministry of Agriculture confirmed to The Syria Report that the ministry is considering abandoning support to wheat cultivation.

ISIS utilised its weekly publication, Al-Naba, to launch a strongly worded critique against Syrian President Ahmad Al-Sharaa.

On March 10, the Autonomous Administration in North and East Syria (AANES) approved its 2025 budget, with projected revenues at USD 855.47 million, marking a 27.7 percent increase compared to 2024 (USD 670 million). Planned expenditures are forecast at USD 1.09 billion, a 2.8 percent increase from USD 1.06 billion in 2024.