Ukraine’s low-cost Shahed killers draw US and Gulf interest, but a wartime ban blocks sales

KYIV, Ukraine — As the war in the Middle East strains U.S. missile stockpiles, Ukraine hopes it can turn a wartime innovation — low-cost interceptors designed to shoot down Russian attack drones — into geopolitical leverage.

Ukraine, now one of the world’s leading manufacturers of interceptors, is offering this expertise to the United States and its Gulf partners for the war in the Middle East, hoping to receive this expertise in exchange for high-end weapons it cannot produce at home.

Ukraine’s domestic arms industry was weak when Russia began its full-scale invasion four years ago. Forced to innovate to survive, the country has since built a rapidly growing defense sector focused on low-cost drones; some of these are specifically designed to counter Iranian-style Shahed drones, of the type Russia has now launched hundreds of times.

The US recently requested “special support” against Iranian-made Shahid in the Middle East, prompting Zelenskyy to order the deployment of Ukrainian equipment and experts, although the details remain classified.

When the war started in Ukraine in 2022, Kyiv banned arms exports. But now Ukrainian manufacturers of low-cost interceptor aircraft say they are attracting interest from the United States and Gulf countries.

While other countries may produce interceptor drones, Ukraine currently has the only mass-produced system that has been tested in combat, said Oleh Katkov, editor-in-chief of Defense Express. “There’s a big difference between a mass-produced system that’s been proven to work in real combat and a system that others only promise to improve… It’s like selling not just the bricks, but the house as well,” he said.

If cooperation with partners is successful, Ukraine could emerge as a new player in modern warfare, but it remains to be seen whether its industry can grow to meet this ambition or expand into global markets without compromising its own defenses.

The increased interest from the Middle East comes as Gulf states are depleting their stockpiles of expensive Patriot missiles, which they use to shoot down much cheaper Shahid missiles from Iran.

The cost of the Iranian-designed Shahed drone starts at around $30,000; The cost of a single interceptor missile for the US-made Patriot air defense system costs millions.

Lockheed Martin said in a statement that it produced a record number of 600 PAC-3 MSE interceptors for Patriot batteries throughout 2025. Zelenskyy claimed on Thursday that Middle Eastern countries had deployed more than 800 such missiles in just three days; that’s more than Ukraine held in reserve for the entire four-year war.

Kiev has developed low-cost interceptor drones priced around $1,000 to $2,000 to counter the Shaheds, moving the systems from prototype to mass production in a few months in 2025.

But Ukraine has never developed defenses against ballistic missiles. Therefore, ensuring the safety of Patriot missiles remains a life-or-death struggle for Kiev.

In this context, Zelenskyy offers a “swap” to the partners. “Our message is very simple,” he said. “We quietly…want to take the Patriot missiles we lack and give them a corresponding number of interceptor missiles.”

Despite Zelenskyy’s optimism, some analysts warn that entering the global arms market is not as simple as signing a contract.

“The arms trade is an incredibly nuanced and sensitive issue,” said Yevhen Mahda, executive director of the Kiev-based World Policy Institute. He said this was a market dominated by the United States and warned that it would be “naive” to wait for the markets to open just because Ukraine has an interesting story. “It requires a tough, calculated diplomatic game.”

Ukrainian officials have only recently begun actively discussing the transition from a wartime arms export freeze to a state-regulated market, but it remains unclear when and how such a system would be introduced.

Mahda said, “We need more than the president’s statements. We need to take action.” “How can we talk about exports if we are not officially selling anything yet?”

The United States and Gulf states, including the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Qatar, have made repeated requests for Ukraine’s domestically produced interceptor drones, according to three Ukrainian arms manufacturers.

Neither the United States nor the Gulf states immediately responded to a request for comment from The Associated Press.

“We are ready and want to share them,” said Marco Kushnir, spokesman for Ukrainian arms manufacturer General Cherry, which produces one of the best-performing interceptor UAVs to hit Shahedes in the country.

Kushnir said the decision was ultimately up to the government and Zelenskyy, but the company wanted to help partners and could be ready to do so within a few days. He added that they have the capacity to produce “tens of thousands” of interceptors a month.

Ukraine already has a surplus of interceptor drones, and manufacturers say they can produce tens of thousands more without jeopardizing the country’s defenses. The bigger challenge, they say, is training crews and integrating drones with radar systems that can detect targets from long range.

Many Ukrainian companies have already started using effective systems. General Cherry’s “Bullet” interceptor, developed in late 2025, has shot down several hundred Shahed drones, according to spokesman Kushnir. Skyfall’s other model, called the 3D-printed P1-Sun, costs about $1,000 and can reach speeds of more than 300 kilometers per hour, with production capacity as high as 50,000 drones per month, a company spokesman said.

But while the legal framework for hardware remains unclear, Ukraine’s most valuable asset is human expertise. Zelenskyy has reiterated many times that his country is ready to send trainers who can teach how to use interceptors.

Andrii Taganskyi, Director of Camera Business at Odd Systems, which provides cameras for interceptor drones produced by Wild Hornets, another Ukrainian company, said supply of the drones will not be a problem. But he said it would be essential to train foreign crews to operate the system and adapt tactics.

Taganskyi said interceptor drones are not a standalone product and must be integrated into a larger radar system that can detect and track incoming targets. Although some models are partially automated, manufacturers say teams still need training to use them effectively.

“This is a tool that requires training,” Oleh Katkov said. “And real, proven expertise, not just on paper, exists only in Ukraine.”

Kiev’s willingness to send its experts abroad marks a significant strategic sacrifice due to its impact on Ukraine’s own air defense capabilities. Due to the constant drone bombardment from Russia, every trained soldier is vital.

“We don’t have many military personnel at the front,” Katkov said. “However, there is a clear understanding that the benefits of such cooperation can far outweigh the risks.”

Kullab reported from Nyon, Switzerland.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to the text.