President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that the first group from Ukraine, which will assist Gulf countries with military expertise in repelling Iranian drone attacks, will arrive in the Middle East next week.
He said this during a joint press conference with Dutch Prime Minister Rob Etienne in Kyiv on March 8, a correspondent for Suspilny reports.
So, answering his question whether Kyiv would send only interceptor drones to the Middle East, or also Ukrainian specialists, the head of state replied that “many details are being discussed.”
“You know what kind of resources we have, we understand what kind of resources the Gulf countries have. That is, we are talking about this track as well. It is too early to say about other details. I think next week, when the experts will be on site, they will look, they will help, because they are leaving immediately with the capabilities to help, then we will move, move further,” he explained.
Zelensky noted that there are many different air defense systems in the Middle East, including the American Patriot, but this has proven to be insufficient during modern attacks.
“Ukraine has expertise and experience. All countries recognize, by the way, that this is the greatest experience today, and we have the appropriate production facilities, we must spread all this experience to our close friends and partners in Europe,” the president said.
In a comment to TSN, he clarified that there will be several groups of Ukrainian experts who will be present in the Middle East, and the first will leave there on Monday, March 9. The head of state added that there is also great interest in Ukrainian interceptor drones among the Gulf countries and they want to buy them from Ukraine.
“And we are ready, in principle, to produce. The volume that ours is not using is ready. It is, in principle, large enough,” the president noted.
Zelenskyy previously reported that Ukraine is considering providing expertise on the shooting down of Shahed attack UAVs to Middle Eastern states.
On March 5, he confirmed that Kyiv had received a request from Washington for help with Iranian Shahed kamikaze strike drones in the Middle East, which Iran uses to attack Gulf countries. At that time, the head of state instructed to “provide the necessary means and ensure the presence of Ukrainian specialists.”