Syrian foreign minister Faisal Mekdad said, on Tuesday, that Syria will exchange diplomats with the separatist republics of Donetsk and Luhansk (DPR and LPR) in the coming days or weeks.

In late June, the Syrian Foreign Ministry announced its decision to recognize the self-proclaimed republics as independent countries, four months after Russia began its military operation in Ukraine.

During a meeting with Russian foreign minister Sergey Lavrov, Mekdad says, “We will see that there will be an exchange of diplomatic relations with the republics of Donetsk and Luhansk in the coming days or weeks." 

"We recognized the independence of the DPR and LPR because the moral, historical factor pushed us to it. Russia proved to the whole world that it treated all countries fairly to preserve international law, to preserve the UN charter," Mekdad said.

Elsewhere in his remarks, he added that "the West as a whole used both the US charter and international law... to fulfill its narrow interests."

Commenting on Russia’s military operation In Ukraine, Mekdad stated that Russia's it is “fair and legitimate," expressing confidence that the operation's objectives would be met. 

He also stated that Syria supported Russia "in its just and necessary war, the fight against the forces of neo-Nazism, which threatens all humanity."

It is noteworthy that on February 21, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced Russia's formal recognition of the independence of the DPR and LPR.