Ministry of Finance

Kiev has announced that it will cut political and economic ties with Damascus after the latter recognised Luhansk (also spelt Lugansk) and Donetsk, two Russian-backed breakaway republics in eastern Ukraine. Kiev’s decision, which includes a trade embargo, will further deteriorate relations between the two countries and impact Syria’s trade-related foreign currency inflows. 

Syrian businessman George Heswani has operated in Syria’s oil and gas sector since the 1990s but gained notoriety throughout the decade-long conflict due to his close association with Russia and his alleged role in brokering deals with the Islamic State on the Syrian government’s behalf. The businessman was most recently implicated in the Beirut port explosion of 2020.

Iran’s crude oil exports to Syria for the second quarter of 2022 were relatively stable compared with the preceding quarter.

An affiliate of the Bemo banking group is providing microfinance loans to members of a charity linked to a militia that fought during the war and to various Iranian political figures. The charity is based in the Damascus suburb of Sayyida Zeinab. Another company involved in this project is the local agent of Western Union. The move carries serious risks to the group’s reputation.

Moscow and Damascus are seeking to boost trade relations between Syria and the city of Sevastopol, the largest city in the Crimean peninsula. A memo issued by the Russian embassy lists prominent Sevastopol-based companies, including a supplier of military equipment that is under U.S. sanctions.

Syria, Lebanon, and Egypt signed on June 21 an agreement to import from Egypt 650 million cubic meters of natural gas per year through the Syrian and Jordanian territories.