In a week of war with Iran, Middle Eastern countries used more Patriot missiles than Ukraine received in four years of war

American Patriot anti-aircraft missile systems. Photo: Mindaugas Kulbis / AP

The US-Israel war in Iran could divert the global community's attention from the Ukrainian issue. Nevertheless, for Kyiv, this conflict has opened up an opportunity to demonstrate its expertise and utilize advanced technologies on a new front.

The Ukrainian side is actively offering assistance to American forces and their Middle Eastern allies in defending against Iranian attack drones — the very same models that Russian troops have been launching at Ukrainian territory for years.

As Volodymyr Zelenskyy noted in an interview with NYT, from the first days of the escalation in the Middle East, he and his team began receiving calls from leaders of Bahrain, UAE, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar, and Saudi Arabia requesting consultations and assistance.

Already on March 5, the United States officially approached Ukraine with a request for assistance in defending American military bases in Jordan. According to the Ukrainian leader, a specialized team with domestically produced interceptor drones departed for the designated location the very next day.

Journalists of the publication emphasize that this cooperation unfolds against the backdrop of quite complex relations between Kyiv and Washington. It is notable that on the same day the request for assistance was received, Donald Trump again publicly called the head of the Ukrainian state a greater obstacle to a peace agreement than Vladimir Putin.

Under these circumstances, the Ukrainian authorities expect that supporting American initiatives in the Middle East will strengthen trust from Washington and improve Kyiv's position in peace negotiations mediated by the United States.

In addition, by cooperating with the US in the Middle East, Kyiv also seeks to emphasize the difference between its position and that of Moscow. While Kyiv defends allies, Moscow, according to American intelligence, has been providing Tehran with data on the deployment of American ships and military personnel.

In a conversation with a NYT correspondent, the President of Ukraine emphasized that despite his sincere desire to help Middle Eastern countries, he is forced to balance external requests and internal defense needs, as the war at home has been ongoing for five years. There is a concern that the conflict in Iran could disrupt the supply of weapons needed by Ukrainians themselves.

That is why Kyiv offers countries in the region a barter format: in exchange for Ukrainian anti-drone defense technologies and interceptor UAVs, Ukraine wants to receive powerful air defense systems capable of shooting down Russian ballistic missiles.

Moreover, Kyiv counts on the diplomatic influence of Arab countries, many of which have close ties with Moscow.

“Perhaps they will be able to talk to the Russians to make them pause. In that case, we will certainly help the Middle East with defense,” the Ukrainian side explained the logic.

Today, Ukraine is one of the most competent countries in the world at destroying Iranian «Shaheds», on the basis of which Russia has already created its own versions.

Initially, Ukrainian forces tried to shoot down such drones with expensive missiles, including Patriot. But it quickly became clear that this was not economically viable: the production of one «Shahed» costs up to 50 thousand dollars, while a Patriot interceptor missile costs more than 3 million dollars.

To avoid wasting expensive Western resources, Ukraine has learned to effectively use heavy machine guns, cheap missiles for F-16s, electronic warfare systems, and its own interceptor drones.

Павялічыць

Ukrainian servicemen of a mobile air defense fire group at a position in Donetsk region. May 21, 2025. Such groups on pickup trucks with machine guns and guidance systems hunt Russian drones around the clock and are an important part of protecting the Ukrainian sky. Photo: Oxana Chorna / Global Images Ukraine via Getty Images

According to the Ukrainian Air Force, most such drones are now being shot down. For example, in February, Russia launched about 5,000 drones and decoys at Ukrainian cities, and about 87% of them were destroyed.

As the publication notes, during the interview, Zelenskyy reported that, in addition to Jordan, another group of Ukrainian specialists might go to the region to help countries assess how to defend against Iranian drones without massive use of expensive Patriot missiles.

As NYT notes, these missiles remain very scarce. In 2025, global production of new Patriots totaled only 620 units — and this is considered a record.

However, in just the first week of active fighting in the Middle East, more than 800 such missiles were spent. According to European Commissioner for Defense Andrius Kubilius and the President of Ukraine, this number was needed to counter an attack of more than 2,000 Iranian drones and more than 500 ballistic missiles.

The final figure cited by NYT best illustrates the disproportion: in all the years of the full-scale war, Ukraine, according to Dmytro Lytvyn, adviser to the President of Ukraine, received about 600 modern Patriot missiles.

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