Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made an unannounced visit to Doha on Saturday, where Ukraine and Qatar finalized a defense cooperation agreement. The pact follows a similar arrangement Kyiv reached with Saudi Arabia earlier in the week, and Zelenskyy said an accord with the United Arab Emirates was expected to be concluded soon.
Kyiv has been offering its anti-drone expertise to Gulf states facing attacks attributed to Iran, and Zelenskyy emphasized that secure defenses rely on partnership and cooperation. Earlier this month, Ukraine said it had sent 201 anti-drone military specialists to the Middle East to assist the UAE, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.
The Qatari defense ministry said the agreement will cover technological cooperation, joint investment projects and the exchange of expertise in countering missiles and unmanned aerial systems.
The announcement came as Russia carried out a large drone assault inside Ukraine. Russian strikes on Saturday killed at least five people in Odesa, Poltava and Kryvyi Rih, Zelenskyy’s hometown. The Ukrainian air force said Russia launched 273 drones overnight; 252 were intercepted or neutralized by shooting them down or using electronic jamming. The military said around 60 of the drones were aimed at the southern port city of Odesa.
Zelenskyy condemned the attacks as indiscriminate terror against civilians, saying they inflicted damage on critical port infrastructure and office buildings without any military justification.
Many of the drones used by Russia are based on the Iranian Shahed design, the same type implicated in strikes on Gulf targets. After more than four years of war with Russia, Ukraine has developed substantial experience in anti-drone defenses, which it is now offering to partner countries.
Kyiv also strongly disputed Iranian claims that a depot storing Ukrainian anti-drone systems in the UAE had been struck. The Ukrainian foreign ministry called the report false and accused Tehran of running disinformation operations.
The Doha visit underscores Ukraine’s push to expand security ties in the Gulf as it shares battlefield know-how and seeks diplomatic and military support while contending with continued Russian attacks at home.