How the Iran war has helped Ukraine

As Iran struck out against US military bases in the Middle East and US-aligned Arab countries, the Arabs found themselves unprepared to deal with the new Shahed-led military strategies in war. President Zelensky, touting Ukraine's experience in fighting the same Shahed missiles being sold to Russia by Iran and used against Ukraine, approached the Middle Eastern countries offering them anti-missile defence drones, intelligence-gathering drones and naval deployment drones for the Straits of Hormuz in exchange for military support and long-term mutual strategic defence. 

Ukraine has developed a range of cheap, effective drones and low-cost interceptors, a strategy that has reshaped modern warfare. These systems, some costing as little as $1,000, are used for reconnaissance, attack, and defence against Russian threats like Iranian-designed Shahed drones. An autonomous unit has taken back a Russian-occupied territory, the first time ever that no humans were involved in a manoeuvre. The subsea drones have effectively taken out Russia's Black Sea fleet. Zelensky offered to clear the Strait of Hormuz from mines and to defend it against assault ships. 

He then made pacts with European countries to build defence production facilities in Europe and the UK, thereby strengthening the ties between Ukraine and the EU as well as the Middle East. 

Putin may have gained in the short-term, but Ukraine has ensured that its safety and sovereignty will be supported by numerous allies, and its defence systems will be produced in NATO countries, thus securing their firepower. And Hungary has a new leader who has already strengthened ties with Ukraine and voted to release the €90 billion loan from the embargoed Russian reserves to Ukraine. 

Well done, Mr Zelensky, not bad for a Jewish comedian President. They say it takes a genius to be a good comedian. When others were playing their cards, you were playing chess. The FT came to the same conclusions. 

Дарія Олена Коженьовська Блеквелл

Easter in Ukraine

 

Today in Bucha.

Today, Ukraine celebrates Orthodox Easter under the Julian calendar with faith and defiance, baking paska and decorating pysanky during wartime. Ukraine's Jewish President leads the celebrations with an Easter truce while the Roman Catholic Pope Leo leads prayers for peace in Ukraine.  

So much has happened in Ukraine's situation on the world stage. The US administration has turned its back on Ukraine and in "peace talks" urged Ukraine to give up that "sliver of land" for an end to war. They will never understand that it's not just a sliver of land, but a large chunk of population who are Ukrainians not russians. The russians have stolen hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian children who are being "re-educated" to fight for russia in camps on land held by russia's oil giants. This is but the beginning of Putin's plan. 

But things aren't exactly going to plan for the US or for Russia. 

A month ago, the US and Israel attacked Iran without provocation, presumably to distract from Trump's Epstein woes. But Iran shot down very expensive fighter jets and other planes. They fought back using their Shahed missiles, which they had been supplying to russia for its war in Ukraine. The US was fighting the Shaheds with very expensive Patriot missiles. And Iran was also shooting missiles into neighbouring Arab and Israeli targets. They then closed the Strait of Hormuz. The price of fossil fuels skyrocketed. The US was suddenly the world's pariah, and Americans were not happy campers in an election year when Congress could be flipped. 

Zelensky made a strategically brilliant move. He offered cheap drones and experts to assist the US in fighting off the Shaheds. The US declined. Then he travelled to the Middle East and made agreements with five Arab countries to supply surface drones, subsea drones and other tech in exchange for protection from the Arab leaders. Suddenly, Ukraine was in the leader's seat. They had been fighting Shahed drones for years and had gotten pretty good at it. They developed a whole new approach to warfare, and they were the only experts in these new war tactics. They will probably get a good bit of money for their defence effort in the deals. 

On top of that, they are now exporting their technology to European soil, building drone factories for surveillance, drone defence, and undersea offence. They destroyed the russian fleet, and they can help open the Starits of Hormuz. My, how the tone has changed. Zelenky may not have had the cards, but he's great at playing chess. 

Meanwhile, the US delegation negotiating with Iran in Pakistan has announced that Iran has not accepted their peace plan. So the war in the Middle East continues. 

Today also, Hungarians are voting for their next leader. Huge protests against Viktor Orban, Putin's puppet, have taken place in Budapest over the last few days. The turnout by mid-day has broken all the records. 

Христоc Воскресе! Slava Ukraini.