Ukraine has stationed at least 200 military personnel in the Middle East since March, with soldiers training Gulf states — Saudi Arabia, the UAE, and Qatar — on anti-drone systems that have already been used to intercept long-range Iranian drones. President Volodymyr Zelensky secured a series of bilateral security agreements during a late-March tour of the region, exchanging drone defence technology and military training for energy supplies, and is now lobbying Washington to deploy Ukrainian expertise to help secure the Strait of Hormuz (the critical Persian Gulf chokepoint through which a fifth of the world's oil passes). The move marks a significant strategic shift for Kyiv, which is seeking to raise its international profile and reduce its dependence on Western aid by repositioning itself as a provider of security rather than solely a recipient of it.