The U.S. and Gulf states are in talks to buy Ukraine-made interceptor drones to fend off Iranian attacks, the FT says. Ukraine’s pullout from Donbas would save Russia up to a million troops, Zelenskyi says. Ukraine strikes Russia’s drone control point in occupied Crimea.
U.S., Gulf states in talks to buy Ukraine-made interceptor drones to fend off Iranian attacks, FT says
The Pentagon and at least one Gulf government are in talks to buy Ukrainian-made interceptors to fend off attacks by Iranian drones, according to industry figures in Ukraine, the Financial Times (FT) said on Thursday. The paragraphs below are quoted from the article.
Gulf states had been using expensive Patriot missiles to defend themselves from waves of Iranian Shahed drones in the days since the US and Israel launched their war. But their stocks are declining, and they are looking to Kyiv’s experience for cheaper defence against Russian drone barrages.
Ukraine has pioneered using mass-produced interceptors costing a few thousand dollars to destroy Russian versions of the Shahed, launched against Ukrainian cities in swarms. Shaheds cost a mere $30,000, while interceptor missiles like the PAC-3s used in the Patriot system cost millions.
One Ukrainian official described the discussions with the Pentagon as a “sensitive” topic. “However, it is obvious that there is a surge in interest in the Ukrainian drone interceptors, which can intercept the Shahed for a very low cost.” A local industry figure said any sales of Ukrainian systems, even those made outside the country, would have to be in co-ordination with Kyiv.
Experts say Iran may have stockpiled tens of thousands of Shahed drones. It has launched hundreds since it was attacked by Israel and the US, using them mainly on Gulf states to sow terror and to use up adversaries’ surface-to-air and air-to-air missiles.
Because they are easy to hide and can be launched from anywhere, the Shaheds are less vulnerable to US and Israeli tactics that rely on destroying launchers and stockpiles of missiles on the ground before they are fired.
Kyiv has moved to using cheaper weapons such as anti-aircraft guns and machine gun trucks to take down drones including Shaheds, which Moscow has used against Ukraine since it launched its full-scale invasion in 2022. Ukraine has also since autumn been using fast-flying interceptors that can reach speeds of 250km/h, capable of catching a Shahed, whose top speed is 185km/h.
Kyiv is worried about its own supplies of anti-drone munitions. But it is betting that if Middle Eastern countries use its drone interceptors instead of the PAC-3 missiles for Patriot batteries, there will be more global supplies of PAC-3s left for Ukraine, which needs them to defend against advanced cruise and ballistic missiles.
Iranian tactics in the Gulf mimic Russian tactics against the coastal city of Odesa, where Shahed drones skim the ocean on approach to avoid radar and confound missile interceptors. Drones deployed offshore had the best chance of intercepting them, said one Ukrainian expert.
Some interceptors are capable of using computer vision to lock on to a target, but others are remotely guided.
In Ukraine, “there are literally a dozen companies that make kinetic interceptors — little bullet-shaped quadcopters or fixed-wing drones — for a few thousand dollars apiece”, said one person familiar with the talks.
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi said that Ukraine could swap its interceptor drones for PAC-3 missiles for the Patriot air defense systems that the Gulf countries have and Ukraine lacks.
Ukraine’s pullout from Donbas would save Russia up to a million troops, Zelenskyi says
Ukraine’s withdrawal from Donbas demanded by the Kremlin will not put an end to the war, but will only allow Russian leader Vladimir Putin to spare up to a million troops, regroup the forces and reinvade Ukraine, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyi told Italian public broadcaster Rai in an interview released on Thursday.
“We must understand that Ukraine’s withdrawal from Donbas will not guarantee that Putin will not continue the war. I would even say the opposite. What is certain is that he will continue. What is not certain is whether he will continue immediately, Zelenskyi said on X, quoting excerpts from the interview. “He needs time to prepare, to staff brigades, bring in additional divisions, and so on. That takes time. This is what I believe: he needs this time. But who can guarantee that afterward he will not resume the occupation?”
Russia has stepped up its aggression against Ukraine and Putin’s words cannot be trusted, Zelenskyi continued. Russia was not able to seize all of Donbas militarily, and Ukraine’s pullout from there would be a “gift” to Putin, he added.
“[Putin] wants us to believe him and simply withdraw from our well-fortified territories. These fortifications limit the capabilities of Russian forces. Putin understands that if we withdraw, he will preserve between 300,000 and a million of his soldiers, depending on the intensity and duration of offensive actions in Donbas. Why, then, should we suddenly trust him and hand him such gifts?” Zelenskyi said.
Russia has been repeatedly demanding that Ukraine withdraw from Donetsk and Luhansk regions as a precondition for a peace deal.
Ukraine strikes Russia’s drone control point in Crimea
Ukrainian troops carried out a series of strikes against Russian military depots, sites and troop concentrations in the occupied territories overnight on Wednesday, the General Staff of the Ukrainian Armed Forces said Thursday in a post to social media.
Ukrainian forces struck a Russian ammunition depot near Nyzhnya Krynka and a logistics depot near Chystyakove in the occupied part of Donetsk region.
Ground relay equipment of a drone control point for Geran and Gerbera drones near Chornomorske in occupied Crimea was also targeted.
The General Staff also reported of strike operations against Russian troop concentrations on the outskirts of Berezove in Dnipro region and near Pokrovsk in Donetsk region.
Reports of damage and troop losses are being assessed, the message reads.