President Volodymyr Zelensky said that the first group of Ukrainian military experts will arrive in the Middle East next week.
Interfax-Ukraine reports this from Zelenskyʼs press conference with Dutch Prime Minister Rob Etienne in Kyiv.
Experts are leaving immediately with aid supplies. In exchange, Ukraine wants to receive the resources it lacks.
The US asked Ukraine to help protect against Iranian "Shaheds" in the Middle East on March 5. At the same time, Zelensky said that Ukraine wanted to "quietly" trade with countries in the region: to receive missiles for Patriot in exchange for interceptor drones.
Whatʼs happening in the Middle East?
On the morning of February 28, the United States and Israel launched attacks on Iran. The Israelis called the operation “Lion’s Roar”, the United States called it “Epic Fury”. The attacks killed Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and nearly 40 other senior Iranian officials.
Iran responded by launching ballistic missile attacks on Israel and US bases in the Gulf states of Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar and the UAE. Some Iranian drones and missiles targeted infrastructure and residential areas in Arab countries. On the first day of the attacks, Iran launched a total of 541 drones.
On March 5, Iran attacked Azerbaijan for the first time — a drone crashed into the terminal building of the Nakhichevan airport. There were injuries. A ballistic missile launched from Iran was also shot down over Turkish territory.
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