{"id":10603,"date":"2026-03-27T17:14:15","date_gmt":"2026-03-27T17:14:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wnp.com.pk\/?p=10603"},"modified":"2026-03-29T11:27:26","modified_gmt":"2026-03-29T11:27:26","slug":"zelenskyy-reviews-ukrainian-air-defense-efforts-in-saudi-arabia-offers-deeper-security-cooperation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/index.php\/2026\/03\/27\/zelenskyy-reviews-ukrainian-air-defense-efforts-in-saudi-arabia-offers-deeper-security-cooperation\/","title":{"rendered":"Zelenskyy reviews Ukrainian air defense efforts in Saudi Arabia, offers deeper security cooperation"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>RIYADH: President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy has reviewed the progress of Ukrainian military experts deployed in Saudi Arabia, emphasizing enhanced cooperation to strengthen air defense capabilities against evolving threats.<\/p>\n<p>During his visit, Zelenskyy met with Ukrainian specialists who have been working in the Kingdom for over a week, where they briefed him on initial operational outcomes and broader strategic assessments.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-10604\" src=\"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/HEZxDCDboAECjUZ.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"680\" height=\"454\" srcset=\"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/HEZxDCDboAECjUZ.jpg 680w, https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/HEZxDCDboAECjUZ-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/HEZxDCDboAECjUZ-629x420.jpg 629w, https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/HEZxDCDboAECjUZ-150x100.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 680px) 100vw, 680px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>He said the primary task of the Ukrainian team is to identify vulnerabilities and recommend measures to improve protection of civilian populations and infrastructure from drone and missile threats, including Iranian \u201cShahed\u201d systems.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cI am grateful to the team for their exceptionally prompt and thorough work. There are concrete steps we can take together with our partners,\u201d Zelenskyy said.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-10605\" src=\"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/HEZxDBkWEAA3TbU.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"680\" height=\"454\" srcset=\"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/HEZxDBkWEAA3TbU.jpg 680w, https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/HEZxDBkWEAA3TbU-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/HEZxDBkWEAA3TbU-629x420.jpg 629w, https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/HEZxDBkWEAA3TbU-150x100.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 680px) 100vw, 680px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>The Ukrainian president highlighted that, even within a short period, his country\u2019s experts had shared significant battlefield-tested experience, demonstrating practical approaches used by Ukraine to defend cities and critical infrastructure amid ongoing conflict.<\/p>\n<p>Zelenskyy noted that Ukraine\u2019s expertise in countering aerial threats has gained international recognition, particularly in intercepting drones and missiles, making it a valuable partner for countries facing similar challenges.<\/p>\n<p>He said discussions with Saudi counterparts focused on key elements required to enhance air defense systems, with particular emphasis on effective methods to counter drone attacks.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-10606\" src=\"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/HEZxDBkWIAAUBhW.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"680\" height=\"454\" srcset=\"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/HEZxDBkWIAAUBhW.jpg 680w, https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/HEZxDBkWIAAUBhW-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/HEZxDBkWIAAUBhW-629x420.jpg 629w, https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/HEZxDBkWIAAUBhW-150x100.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 680px) 100vw, 680px\" \/><\/p>\n<blockquote><p>\u201cUkraine is ready for long-term and mutually beneficial cooperation,\u201d he added, reiterating Kyiv\u2019s willingness to support partners that stand with Ukraine.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>The development reflects deepening defense collaboration between Ukraine and Saudi Arabia, as both sides explore joint solutions to emerging regional security threats.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-10607\" src=\"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/HEZxDCEaMAAtVr1.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"680\" height=\"454\" srcset=\"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/HEZxDCEaMAAtVr1.jpg 680w, https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/HEZxDCEaMAAtVr1-300x200.jpg 300w, https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/HEZxDCEaMAAtVr1-629x420.jpg 629w, https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/HEZxDCEaMAAtVr1-150x100.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 680px) 100vw, 680px\" \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>RIYADH: President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelenskyy has reviewed the progress of Ukrainian military experts deployed in Saudi Arabia, emphasizing enhanced cooperation to strengthen air defense capabilities against evolving threats. During his visit, Zelenskyy met with Ukrainian specialists who have been working in the Kingdom for over a week, where they briefed him on initial operational [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10608,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"video","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[81,82,65,54],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-10603","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-video","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-diplomatic-missions","8":"category-european-union","9":"category-foreign-missions","10":"category-middle-east","11":"post_format-post-format-video"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10603","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10603"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10603\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":85498,"href":"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10603\/revisions\/85498"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10608"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10603"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10603"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thediplomat.com.pk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10603"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}