Ukraine’s president seeks influence with low-cost interceptors as the United States and Gulf countries deplete their stockpile of Patriot missiles.
Published March 7, 2026
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said he offered Saudi Arabia his help in intercepting Iranian Shahed drones, which have been launched against several Gulf countries caught in the US-Israel war against Iran.
Zelenskyy said on
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“Ukrainians have been fighting against ‘shahed’ drones for years and everyone recognizes that no other country in the world has this kind of experience. We are ready to help,” said the Ukrainian leader.
Over the course of Russia’s four-year war against Ukraine, Ukraine’s domestic arms industry was forced to innovate, focusing on building low-cost drones to counter Russian attacks with imported Iranian Shahed-136s and homemade copies known as Geran.
Ukraine, now one of the world’s leading producers of interceptors, offers expertise to the United States and the Gulf countries that came under attack over the past week. Countries have been burning through stocks of expensive Patriot missiles to shoot down the significantly cheaper Shaheds.
An Iranian-designed Shahed drone costs approximately $30,000, while a single PAC-3 interceptor missile for the US-made Patriot air defense system costs millions. kyiv has developed low-cost interceptor drones priced around $1,000 to $2,000, moving systems from prototype to mass production in a matter of months.
Earlier this week, Zelenskyy said Ukraine would help the United States by providing specialists to counter drones. He also said he had spoken to the leaders of Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates.
By offering help, Zelenskyy hopes to increase Ukraine’s influence with its allies and obtain the expensive defense systems it needs to defend itself against Russia’s ballistic missiles.
US President Donald Trump said he would accept help from any country when asked about Zelenskyy’s offer of support to help defend against Iranian drones.
