Truth in War: Is the US Ready to Learn from the Ukrainians?

Source: Author’s Facebook page

The war with Iran demonstrated a truth that is always understood after the fight begins: military action is always practice, not theory.

The United States developed a plan for an air strike and the destruction of the Islamic Republic’s military potential, but in the first days of the war, it spent millions of dollars fighting Iranian “shaheeds” – the same shaheeds that Ukrainians “met” in the first months of Russia’s war against Ukraine and who have continued to terrorize our country for the fifth year.

And, by the way, back then, in 2022, I wrote that the Iranians were supplying drones to the Russians for a reason and not even for the money. Ukraine turned out to be a real training ground for Iran for practicing future wars in the Middle East. The Iranians were helping their ally in the Kremlin – and at the same time learning themselves.

And so these new wars began – and it turned out that Iran’s opponents were unable to prepare for them and fell not only into a security trap, but also into a financial trap. The very appeal to Ukraine with a request to help in the fight against Iranian drones is good proof of this.

Four years of the Russian-Ukrainian war are an important experience for both armies. And we can say that today modern warfare is practiced both in Moscow and in Kyiv. Only Russia plays for a different team. It helps Iran and North Korea, conducts joint military exercises with China, and is interested in destabilizing Europe. The Russians will help the Iranians strike American targets, not explain to the American military how to defend themselves from enemy attacks.

So, the civilized world today only has the experience of the Ukrainian army – and this is invaluable experience. Because the Ukrainian army has not just been studying modern warfare and creating modern warfare for these four years. It has also been practicing the experience of confronting a smaller enemy with a larger one – that is, it is Ukrainians who can understand the tactics of Iran’s actions. And it is Ukrainians who can explain how to defend themselves from Iran and how to force its regime to abandon aggressive actions towards its neighbors – actions that are already destabilizing the world economy and can quickly lead to an unforeseen collapse.

Yes, the war between the US and Israel against Iran could lead to many risks for Ukraine. This includes rising oil prices, which could give Putin the opportunity to replenish the Russian budget with new petrodollars. And a possible shortage of anti-missiles – if drones are shot down with Patriot missiles, this shortage will be felt in the coming weeks. And let’s not forget how many countries will now be “hunting” for anti-missiles.

But at the same time, the need for joint action to confront authoritarian regimes becomes obvious. Of course, one can ignore Russia’s true intentions – but that’s like ignoring the elephant in the room. Sooner or later, President Trump’s administration will simply have to accept a simple conclusion: without Ukrainian experience, it is impossible to achieve the security of American military facilities in the Middle East (and beyond) and generally understand the logic of modern war.

And this means the need to help Ukraine repel Russian aggression, and not to nurture dangerous illusions about an understanding with Putin.

As a reminder, representatives of the US Department of Defense visited Ukraine to discuss the possible use of Ukrainian experience in countering drones. The point is the development of cheaper means of intercepting drones that can be used by the American side.

In addition, the US has officially asked Ukraine to share its experience in intercepting Iranian Shahed strike drones. This is because Iran’s rapid counterattack using cheap and easy-to-produce drones after the start of the US-Israeli military campaign demonstrated the vulnerability of the US and its regional allies.

It later emerged that Ukraine had sent an expert team and interceptor drones to help protect US military bases in Jordan. The decision came after the United States requested assistance. President Volodymyr Zelensky said the US had requested assistance from Ukraine on March 5.

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