Iran no doubt shook the work defense policies
Gulf Allies Turn Away From U.S. for Fresh Ammo
Saudi Arabia, U.A.E. and Qatar cast a wider net to secure supplies, from South Korean systems to low-cost British missiles
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Alistair MacDonald
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Summer Said
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April 12, 2026 10:00 am ET
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A fire at Dubai International Airport last month after an Iranian strike in the United Arab Emirates. Agence France-Presse/Getty Images
Six weeks of relentless air bombardment sapped air defense stocks in the Middle East. Now begins the scramble to rearm.
With a fragile cease-fire in place between the U.S. and Iran, America’s closest allies in the region—and some of the best customers for U.S. weapons systems—are scanning the world for alternative missile defenses, getting creative about ways to bolster defenses quickly.
Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates are turning to South Korean missile-defense systems, Ukrainian drones that smash into targets midair and traditional American Gatling guns.
They are also looking to tap new kit from startups, including Britain’s Cambridge Aerospace, which the U.K. said on Friday will be supplying Gulf states with small, low-cost missiles
designed to take out drones and other munitions.
The rush shows how the U.S. and Gulf nations were caught by surprise by the extent of Iran’s retaliatory attacks, and how cheap drones such as the Shahed are enabling mass attacks.
It also exposes the arms industry’s lack of capacity despite a surge in demand since Russia invaded Ukraine four years ago. The U.S. arms industry, in particular, could lose out potential orders.
Missiles made by Lockheed Martin on display at the 2025 Defense and Security Equipment International exhibition. Jose Sarmento Matos/Bloomberg News
“Investments in new capacity have already started to happen, but not at the required intensity to fill current demand,” said Adrien Rabier, an analyst at Bernstein.
Saudi Arabia has reached out to Japan, which makes Patriot interceptors, and it has asked South Korea’s
Hanwha and
LIG Nex1 about bringing forward an order for their M-SAM system, according to people familiar with the matter.
The M-SAM, a midrange surface-to-air system that can intercept drones, missiles and planes, has been used by the U.A.E. to down Iranian munitions, a South Korean lawmaker said.
M-SAM II Air Defense System
Launcher type:
Reload time:
Year introduced:
Origin:
Crew required:
Mobile Truck Mounted
1 hour
2021
South Korea
3 to 5
8 missiles per launcher
KM-SAM Block II
Range against aerial targets:
Target’s max altitude:
Speed:
Weight:
31.1 miles
12.4 miles
Mach 5
882 lbs
Note: Drawings are not to scale
Sources: The Defense Watch; Army Recognition
Jemal R. Brinson/WSJ
Riyadh has also signed a
defense-cooperation deal with Ukraine. The deal focuses on weapons production and experience sharing.
Qatar has signed a cooperation agreement with Ukraine, too. Qatari officials
recently visited a Ukrainian training ground for interceptor drones and met with representatives from one of the country’s largest defense companies.
A spokesperson for the U.A.E. said the country has “diverse, integrated, and multilayered air defense systems” and “a robust strategic stockpile of munitions.” A Saudi official said, “We are working seamlessly with U.S. providers but we also have excellent relationships with others,” and offered the recent agreement with Ukraine as an example.
Qatar didn’t respond to requests for comment. Qatari officials have said publicly that they aren’t running out of stocks and are well prepared to defend themselves.
Ukrainian companies and military units say Gulf officials have asked for interceptor drones and electronic-warfare equipment.
But Ukrainian arms makers don’t necessarily have supplies to spare or the ability to export. One supplier, Wild Hornets, produces more than 10,000 interceptor drones a month but says the vehicles are needed to meet high demand in Ukraine. Exports also require government approval.
The U.A.E. is in talks with Kyiv about a defense cooperation pact, and it has asked South Korean companies to supply more interceptor missiles, according to people familiar with the request said.
Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky and Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani met in Doha last month. Handout/UKRAINIAN PRESIDENTIAL PRESS SERVICE/Agence France-Presse/Getty Images
At the heart of the problem is that U.S. arms production can’t keep up with a world at war.
The Trump administration
moved forward with $23 billion in weapons sales to the U.A.E., Kuwait and Jordan. The deal includes air-defense systems, radar and Patriot PAC-3 missiles aimed at helping the allies defend against Iranian attacks.
But some of these supplies will take years to deliver.
Nearly 20 countries use the Patriot system, and supplies have already been drained by the Ukraine war. Switzerland said last week that it is considering canceling an order for Patriot systems, given persistent delays. The country ordered five of the systems in 2022 but the U.S. told it last year that it was reprioritizing Patriot systems to support Ukraine.
Interceptor drones are some of the tech Ukraine has to offer after years of fending off Russia’s drone attacks. Nikoletta Stoyanova/Getty Images
There are also lower-tech, faster deliverable options.
RTX’s Raytheon business has fielded inquiries about supply of its Phalanx rapid-fire Gatling gun, according to Jennifer Gauthier, Raytheon vice president for naval systems and sustainment. Other bullet-based weapons, which can be mounted on trucks, have proven a cheap and effective way to intercept drones in Ukraine.
The solution for countries in the Gulf is to look for alternatives.
Last month, officials from several Gulf states met defense companies at a British army barracks close to Buckingham Palace. Luke Pollard, U.K. minister for defense readiness and industry, had a question for the gathered executives.
“What can you deliver within 30, 60 and 90 days?” he asked, according to people in attendance.
British officials, who convened the meeting, implored the companies in attendance to boost production, the people said.
Executives responded with their own question: How can we satisfy increased demand from the U.K., Ukraine and the Gulf states all at the same time?
Arms startups are getting in on the action. Johannes Pinl, whose company, Marss, sells software and equipment for signals jamming and bullet-based air defense, received outreach from an official in the region soon after the war started.
“We need more ASAP, what more do you have on the shelf, what can you get to me?,” the official asked Pinl.
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Appeared in the April 15, 2026, print edition as 'Gulf Allies Look Beyond the U.S. for Fresh Weapons'.
