Ukraine offers Gulf states its drone war playbook as Iran’s cheap drones outgun million-dollar missiles
Ukraine is offering its battlefield expertise in countering mass drone attacks to Gulf states as tensions rise in the Middle East and concerns grow over the vulnerability of traditional air defence systems.
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Speaking exclusively to LBC, Olesia Horiainova, Deputy Head of the Ukrainian Security and Cooperation Centre, said the recent attacks in the Persian Gulf underline a lesson Ukraine has already learned during Russia’s invasion: even the most advanced missile defence systems can be economically overwhelmed.
“The experience of the recent attacks in the Persian Gulf only confirms the lesson that Ukraine learnt earlier, and at a much higher cost,” she said.
“Even the most advanced systems, such as the Patriot, have demonstrated their economic vulnerability. Intercepting a cheap drone with a missile costing tens of millions of dollars is a recipe for depleting air defences.”
Read more: Huge fire rages near Dubai International Airport after Iranian drone attack - as flights suspended
Modern air defence systems such as the MIM-104 Patriot were built to destroy high-value threats including ballistic missiles and fast military aircraft, and the interceptor missiles they fire can cost several million dollars each.
Increasingly, however, those systems are being used against far cheaper weapons. Russia and Iran have relied heavily on drones such as the Shahed-136, which can cost only tens of thousands of dollars to produce.
The result is a stark economic imbalance. A drone costing roughly $20,000 to $50,000 can force a defender to fire a missile costing anywhere from $3 million to $10 million.
Repeated over hundreds of attacks, that dynamic risks exhausting stocks of expensive interceptor missiles far faster than attackers run out of cheap drones.
Even when every incoming drone is shot down, defenders can still find their air defences depleted by the sheer economics of the exchange.
Horiainova's warning comes as the UK and its allies consider how to respond to escalating tensions around the Strait of Hormuz, a critical shipping route that carries roughly a fifth of the world’s oil supply.
Iran has been accused of attempting to blockade the narrow sea passage, prompting calls from US President Donald Trump for allies to deploy warships to protect global shipping.
However, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer has so far resisted those calls.
Downing Street confirmed the Prime Minister discussed the crisis with Trump over the weekend, including the need to reopen the shipping route and reduce disruption to global trade.
Instead of sending warships, Britain is reportedly considering deploying mine-hunting drones to the region amid concerns Iran may be laying explosives in the waterway.
Ukrainian officials say the situation highlights the growing role of drones in modern conflict and the economic imbalance between cheap attack systems and costly defensive weapons.
“Mass production and low cost proved more effective than technological sophistication without taking the economics of war into account,” Horiainova told LBC.
Ukraine has responded by developing layered drone defence systems designed to counter large-scale aerial attacks.
“Mass can only be countered with mass, but intelligent mass,” she said.
“Interceptor drones, which cost a hundred times less than missiles, mobile units, electronic warfare and an integrated detection network are not a replacement for large systems, but a necessary complement to them.”
According to Horiainova, Ukrainian air defence teams are now capable of tracking and engaging hundreds of targets overnight, destroying many drones before they reach major cities and targeting launch sites when possible.
But she told LBC the real advantage lies not just in technology, but in the operators themselves.
“This is a kind of ‘sky chess’ played every day between our teams and Russian drone operators,” she said.
“This intellectual work cannot be imported as an off-the-shelf solution. It has to come with the people who have been doing it every day.”
Ukraine is now offering that expertise to countries facing similar threats in the Gulf, pitching its experience as a model for building resilient, scalable and cost-effective air defence networks.
“Ukraine is offering not just weapons, but a model,” Horiainova said.
“If the world truly wishes to learn lessons from this war, the first step is simple: invest not only in hardware, but also in the people and institutions that have already proven they can contain this threat.”
The warning comes as the region faces growing drone disruption.
On Monday, flights were temporarily suspended at Dubai International Airport after a drone-related incident sparked a fire near the airport. Authorities later confirmed the blaze had been contained and no injuries were reported.
The incident forced several airlines, including Emirates, to ground flights as a precaution.
Analysts say the combination of cheap drones, maritime choke points and fragile global supply chains is creating a new type of security challenge for Western governments.