Ukraine deploys units to 5 Middle East countries to intercept drones

KYIV — Ukraine has deployed specialist teams to five Middle Eastern countries to help intercept drones and advise on air-defense measures, with officials saying they expect to conclude several significant agreements.

President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said teams had been sent to the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, and Jordan, states that have come under fire during the Iran war.

He said that local air defense units were dealing with ballistic missiles, while Ukrainian specialists were focused on the waves of Iran’s Shahed drones.

“I believe no one has experience comparable to ours,” Zelenskyy told journalists in audio messages on a WhatsApp chat, adding that 228 Ukrainian specialists were now in the region.

“We are working with the Middle East — with leaders, at the technical level, and with ministries of defense. In general, we are preparing serious arrangements and agreements,” he said.

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His security council secretary Rustem Umerov has visited all five of those countries this week, and said earlier on Friday that further steps for “long-term security cooperation” had been outlined with each, without giving details.

Kyiv has said nearly a dozen countries have sought its help and advice in defending against cheap kamikaze drones, which Iran is using against its Gulf neighbors. Russia has launched similar drones at Ukraine since its 2022 invasion, and Kyiv has developed its own advanced interceptor drone capabilities.

Although Gulf states operate sophisticated U.S.-made air defense systems, the missiles they use are in short supply and they cost much more than Iran’s Shahed drones.

Moscow has bombarded Ukraine with nearly 60,000 Shaheds and similar systems. It initially bought thousands of them from Iran, before establishing its own production facilities to make them under license. Ukraine has also launched drone attacks at Russia, although on a smaller scale.

Umerov said on Friday that drone interception units were initially protecting civilian and critical infrastructure, and work was under way to expand their coverage areas.

The teams were using Ukrainian technology to counter drone attacks and partners were consulting with them, he said.

Ukraine wants money and technology in return

Zelenskyy has said Kyiv wanted money and technology in return for its help in the Middle East, adding that the United States was among nations that sought Kyiv’s help, and that Ukrainian specialists had been sent to a U.S. military base in Jordan.

U.S. President Donald Trump, who has a rocky relationship with Zelenskyy, has denied Washington needs Kyiv’s help in downing drones.

Zelenskyy said on Friday that teams from Kyiv and Washington would hold talks in the U.S. on the weekend, where they would discuss a wide-ranging drone deal and work on bilateral documents.

He did not specify which documents would be discussed, but Kyiv wants post-war security guarantees from Washington, and to agree a “prosperity plan” for economic revival after fighting ends.

Ukraine has spent a year trying to finalize a drone-cooperation package with Washington worth up to $50 billion. The proposal would see Ukraine share the innovative drone technologies it developed during the war in exchange for U.S. investment

“First and foremost, it includes naval drones and our long-range drones that have already been proven in the war,” Zelenskyy said.

He said that Ukraine was already jointly producing drones with Germany, Britain, Denmark and the Netherlands, and that it was starting to do so with Norway.

“It is important that Ukraine’s global significance in ensuring security and the quality of Ukrainian security expertise in safeguarding lives are recognised by all partners,” he wrote on Telegram.