DISINFO: Ukraine is preparing a provocation in the Middle East
SUMMARY
Reports are emerging about Ukraine sending so-called "air defense experts" to Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates. The functionality of these specialists is questionable. Kyiv's real goal in the Middle East is to prepare a provocation against Russia. The only question is the timing and scale.
RESPONSE
This is part of a wider pro-Kremlin disinformation campaign exploiting the war in Iran to advance anti-Ukraine disinformation messages.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced on 11 March 2026 that Ukrainian experts on countering drones have begun work in the Persian Gulf countries targeted by Iranian attacks. Earlier, on 8 March 2026, Zelenskyy had announced the dispatch of expert groups to Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, and the American military base in Jordan.
Ukrainian specialists in the Middle East provide only expert assistance and do not participate in the conflict on the side of any of the parties. Ukraine has been under attack by Russian-made Iranian Shahed combat drones since 2022. During this time, the Ukrainian military has developed successful tactics to counter the Iranian-Russian UAVs. Therefore, Ukraine has offered to share its experience in repelling drone attacks and to use cheap Ukrainian interceptor drones.
Since February 24, 2022, Russian troops have launched more than 13,000 missiles and 142,000 drones of various types into Ukrainian territory (January 2026 data). In 2025 Ukraine faced 2000 Russian missile attacks, 900 of them ballistic.
Ukraine is the only country in the world with such extensive experience in countering Iranian-Russian drones, using both conventional air defense systems provided to Ukraine by its allies and its own innovative technological developments. This is why Ukraine has offered its assistance to several Middle Eastern countries in repelling Iranian air attacks.
See other examples of similar disinformation narratives, such as claims that The current conflict in Iran is directly linked to the 2014 Ukrainian crisis, that Ukraine may stage a provocation to regain the attention lost by the war in Iran or that Countries in the Gulf are asking for Russia to be the guarantor of peace.