Three weeks after President Volodymyr Zelensky announced that Ukrainian drone specialists were helping five Gulf states counter Iranian Shahed drones and build low-cost interceptor-based air defenses, he revealed Friday that Ukrainian military personnel had just recently shot down Shaheds in the Gulf theater.
"Our teams are already working with five countries on countering (Iran's) 'Shahed' drones — we have provided expert assessments and are helping build a defense system," Zelensky stated on X in mid-March.
By Friday, AP News quoted Zelensky as saying Ukrainian personnel helped partners build effective air defenses using interceptor drones to combat Iranian Shaheds.
"This was not about a training mission or exercises, but about support in building a modern air defense system that can actually work," Zelensky said.
Low-cost interceptor drones deployed by Ukraine are among the most effective ways to combat the inexpensive $20,000 Shaheds, as a war of attrition makes little economic sense when interceptor missiles cost hundreds of thousands of dollars or more.
Ukraine has had four years to develop low-cost one-way attack drones and interceptors during its war with Russia. Now, this technology is clearly being exported across multiple theaters in Eurasia.
Zelensky did not identify the countries or the exact interceptor drones used, but it is possible that Octopus-100 autonomous interceptor drones were deployed.
He said Ukraine had deployed hundreds of experts to the Gulf area, and, in return, has received weapons to protect its energy assets as well as financial support.
We recently published a fascinating piece titled "Ukraine Becomes World's AI Weapons Laboratory" that delves into Ukraine's drone industry and offers more insight into the interceptor technology.
Here's an excerpt from the note:
General Cherry is one of two Ukrainian companies selected to compete in the Pentagon’s Drone Dominance Program, a $1.1 billion initiative to field large numbers of cheap, effective one-way attack drones for American forces. Both General Cherry and Ukrainian Defense Drones Tech Corp. have demonstrated they can mass-produce drones on short notice. General Cherry is now in talks with several Persian Gulf states about supplying interceptor drones to the Iran war.
The conflict areas across Eurasia, from Russia-Ukraine to the U.S.-Iran war, have only reinforced that the warfare technology of the 2030s has been pulled forward. After four years of hyper-development in the Eastern European theater, low-cost drones are already transforming modern battlefields worldwide. The most alarming development is that this low-cost war tech is spreading across Eurasia as more countries work to design, develop, and manufacture at scale, with future stockpiles likely to be measured in the millions.