According to The Times of Israel, US forces have deployed the Ukrainian Sky Map system in the Middle East to defend against Iranian Shahed drones. The report says the system can detect incoming UAVs and direct anti-air drones to intercept them.

The publication said the system is being used to protect the US Prince Sultan air base in Saudi Arabia. In its assessment, the appearance of a Ukrainian system at an American facility may point to vulnerabilities in US air and missile defence. The newspaper also noted that Prince Sultan has repeatedly come under drone and missile attack.

Earlier, TWZ reported that US facilities in the Middle East had also been reinforced with Merops interceptors already used in Ukraine. According to that report, after the start of the operation against Iran, the United States purchased 13,000 of these interceptor drones. The price of a single anti-drone UAV is estimated at about $15,000.

On February 28, the United States and Israel launched a military operation against Iran. In response, Teheran carried out strikes on US bases and oil infrastructure in the Middle East. Iran also closed the Hormuz Strait, through which about 30 percent of global seaborne oil supplies had been passing.