The US military has deployed Ukrainian anti-drone technology at a key US airbase in Saudi Arabia in recent weeks in a bid to stop Iranian attacks that have destroyed planes and buildings and killed at least one soldier, Reuters has found.
The deployment of the Ukrainian command and control platform called Sky Map at Prince Sultan Air Base, which has not been reported before, is evidence of how the Ukrainian army has made progress in the field of drone and anti-drone technologies, battle-hardened in the four-year war with Russia, the agency says.
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Ukrainian anti-drone platform at an American base
Ukrainian military officials have arrived at the base in recent weeks to train U.S. troops on the Sky Map system, which is widely used by the Ukrainian military to detect incoming drones — including Iran's Shahed drones — and launch counterattacks with interceptor drones.
Due to the fact that cheap, mass-produced drones play a vital role in Russia's war in Ukraine, Pentagon increases investment in anti-drone technology.
However, analysts say that the use of Ukrainian technology at the Prince Sultan base, which is about 640 km from Iran and has been vulnerable to drone and missile attacks since the beginning of the war, highlights the weaknesses of American air and missile defenses.
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Does Volodymyr Zelensky have the cards? Donald Trump had to change his mind
This month, President Donald Trump publicly rejected Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's offer to provide aid in the fight against Iranian drone attacks. “We don't need their help defending against drones.” Trump said in a March 6 interview with Fox News.
Earlier, the US president criticized Volodymyr Zelensky, saying: “He doesn't have any cards.”
Last month, the Pentagon's counter-drone unit announced it had allocated $350 million. to strengthen defense against drones as part of Operation Epic Fury.
Attacks on US bases in the Persian Gulf
Sky Map has become the main command and control platform used by the Ukrainian military, according to three people familiar with the matter.
Sky Fortress, the company that produces Sky Map, was launched in 2022 by Ukrainian engineers with ties to the military.
In the weeks after the war began, the Prince Sultan base faced attacks by Shahed drones and missiles. One of the Air Force's E-3 AWACS radar aircraft was destroyed in the attack on March 27, and multiple KC-135 tankers were damaged in the subsequent attack.
Iranian Shahed Drones Shahed-136 – specifications
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Polish Press Agency
Iran took over its attack tactics from Russia. According to experts quoted by the Wall Street Journal, Iran's attacks on the Persian Gulf countries have features typical of the tactics of the Russian army, which has been using drones – including Iranian Shaheds – in attacks on Ukraine for four years. The idea is to attack key infrastructure and try to “psychologically exhaust the opponent.”
Source: Reuters
