Truly a blessing for the entire country.
Same thing with our Arab brothers in the GCC, Syria, Jordan, parts of Iraq and elsewhere. However KSA was most "harshly" (blessedly) hit.
Yanbu Port" Breaks Hormuz Strait Closure.
#Japan's television celebrates the arrival of the first oil tanker coming from
#SaudiArabia after 28 days of war..- It is
#SaudiArabia "May God honor it" the world's energy artery
Saudi ports on the Red Sea continue to operate at full capacity to facilitate the delivery of goods to all Arab Gulf countries.
We will have untold benefits from this KSA-Ukraine cooperation. That dates back at least 15-20 years but is now more strongly cemented.
Ukraine announces ‘mutually beneficial’ defence deal with Saudi Arabia
Kyiv, which has built expertise on how to counter drones, seals pact amid Iran war.
An instructor from the Ukrainian company General Cherry demonstrates the operation of an anti-air interceptor drone designed to destroy Russian attack drones in Kyiv region, on Wednesday, March 11, 2026 [Efrem Lukatsky/AP]
By Reuters
Published On 27 Mar 202627 Mar 2026
Ukraine says it has signed a defence agreement with Saudi Arabia as Gulf countries continue to come under Iranian attack amid the United States and Israel’s war on Iran.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who arrived in the kingdom on Thursday, said on X that an “important arrangement” had been made ahead of a meeting with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
“It lays the foundation for future contracts, technological cooperation, and investment … Saudi Arabia also has capabilities that are of interest to Ukraine, and this cooperation can be mutually beneficial,” Zelenskyy posted on Friday.
Saudi Arabia’s state news agency said the two countries had signed a memorandum on defence procurement.
Riyadh has intercepted hundreds of drones and dozens of missiles from Iran since the US and Israel first struck Tehran on February 28. At least six missiles were intercepted on Friday, the Saudi defence ministry said.
Kyiv, which has long battled Russian drones, was quick to signal willingness to partner with Gulf countries after Iran began launching attacks on Gulf nations. Tehran insists it is targeting US assets in the region, but the assaults have upset relations as Gulf nations say civilians are being put at risk. So far, 25 people have died in Gulf countries,
two as recently as Thursday in the United Arab Emirates.
Ukraine has become a
major producer of cheap but efficient interceptor drones to counter Moscow’s waves of drone attacks that have intensified since late 2024.
“This winter alone, Russia launched over 19,000 drones into Ukraine, just to give some perspective on how much experience they do have in shooting down drones,” said Al Jazeera’s Audrey MacAlpine, reporting from Kyiv.
“We spoke to the air force, for example, which said that an increasing number of objects being shut down are shut down with interceptor drones. So there is a growing experience from Ukraine, which is probably one of the global leaders when it comes to drones, and that’s because they’ve been able to react and respond in real time to troubleshoot this technology,” she said.
On March 18, Zelenskyy said 201 anti-drone experts had been
deployed to the Middle East to assist in the defence against Iranian attacks.
Yurii Cherevashenko, deputy commander of Ukraine’s Air Defence Cover Forces, told Al Jazeera the drones face unique challenges in the Middle East, such as sandstorms. But successful interception ultimately boils down to the pilot’s skills, he said.
In one of Russia’s largest wartime
aerial attacks on Ukraine,
it launched 948 drones within 24 hours on Tuesday, killing two people.
Kyiv, which has built expertise on how to counter drones, seals pact amid Iran war.
www.aljazeera.com
