US Deploys Ukrainian Counter-Drone System in Saudi Arabia

The United States military has deployed a Ukrainian-developed counter-drone system at Prince Sultan Air Base in Saudi Arabia to defend against repeated Iranian drone and missile attacks, according to officials familiar with the matter. The base, located approximately 400 miles from Iran, has endured a series of strikes in recent months that damaged aircraft, infrastructure and resulted in at least one American service member's death.

The technology, known as Sky Map, serves as a command-and-control platform that integrates data from radars, sensors and acoustic detectors to identify incoming threats on a unified dashboard with maps and live video feeds. It has been instrumental in coordinating interceptions, including the use of interceptor drones against Iranian-made Shahed models. Ukrainian military specialists arrived at the base in recent weeks to train U.S. personnel on its operation, marking a practical collaboration despite earlier public reservations from U.S. leadership.

This deployment comes in the wake of a March Iranian missile attack that destroyed a U.S. Air Force E-3 Sentry airborne warning and control system aircraft and damaged several KC-135 refueling tankers....