US Sends Intercept Drones Used in Ukraine to Blunt Iran Strikes
US soldiers carry a Merops interceptor drone during tests at the Nowa Deba military training ground in south-eastern Poland, on Nov. 18, 2025.
Photographer: Wojtek Radwanski/AFP/Getty ImagesThe US Army has sent 10,000 interceptor drones developed in Ukraine to the Middle East as it looks to repel Iranian attacks without using up high-cost missile defenses, according to US Army Secretary Dan Driscoll.
Driscoll said in an interview that the AI-enabled Merops drones were sent within five days of the start of the US-Israeli operation against Iran on Feb. 28. The Merops drones were developed by Project Eagle, a defense venture backed by former Google Chief Executive Eric Schmidt, and then sent to Ukraine in 2024.