Kyiv: The United States and its allies in the Middle East are seeking Ukraine’s expertise in countering Iran’s Shahed drones, according to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Various countries, including the United States, have approached Ukraine for help in defending against the Iranian drones,
Zelenskyy said late Wednesday. He said he has spoken in recent days with the leaders of the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, Jordan and Kuwait about possible cooperation.
Russia has fired tens of thousands of Shaheds at Ukraine since it invaded its neighbour just over four years ago. Iran has responded with the same type of drones to joint US-Israeli strikes on Iranian targets.
Ukrainian assistance in countering Iranian drones will be provided only if it does not weaken Ukraine’s own defences, and if it adds leverage to Kyiv’s diplomatic efforts to stop the Russian invasion, according to the Ukrainian leader.
“We help to defend from war those who help us, Ukraine, bring a just end to the war” with Russia, Zelenskyy said.
The Iran war, now in its sixth day, has drawn international attention away from Europe’s biggest conflict since World War II, and forced the postponement of
a new round of US-brokered talks between Russia and Ukraine planned for this week, Zelenskyy said.
Western governments and analysts say the Russia-Ukraine war has killed hundreds of thousands of people, while there is no sign that yearlong US-led peace efforts will stop the fighting any time soon.
“Right now, because of the situation around Iran, there are not yet the necessary signals for a trilateral meeting,” Zelenskyy said. “But as soon as the security situation and the overall
political context allow us to resume that trilateral diplomatic work, it will be done.”
Oleksandr Merezhko, the head of Ukraine’s parliamentary foreign affairs committee, said Russian President Vladimir Putin is trying to drag out the negotiations so that he can press on with Russia’s invasion while escaping further US sanctions.
He urged the US administration to look at the Russia-Ukraine war and the war in the MiddleEast as linked.