Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Thursday kicked off a surprise visit to Saudi Arabia, seeking support for Kyiv as the U.S. reportedly weighs shifting military resources to the Middle East amid escalating tensions with Iran.
Zelenskyy met with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman in Jeddah to discuss the escalating military tensions in the Middle East and the war in Ukraine. The Ukrainian leader said he expected to hold “important meetings” during this trip, as Kyiv offered its air-defense expertise and drone technology to countries in the region reeling from the Iranian strikes.
More than 200 Ukrainian experts have been dispatched to advise Middle East countries on how to intercept attacks that have wreaked havoc on energy infrastructure across the region.
Zelenskyy is hoping to draw support from the Gulf nations in Kyiv’s war against Russia, which is now in its fifth year and Western military aid faces new uncertainty.
Iran’s Shahed-136 ‘kamikaze’ drone has become a fixture of modern warfare, with Moscow utilizing the technology in its years-long invasion of Ukraine. Ukraine has found some success in downing drones with fighter jet cannon fire and recently pioneered the development of cheaper mass-produced interceptors.
