Cheongung-II (KM-SAM Block II) Destroys 29 of 30 Iranian Missiles in UAE Combat Debut, Triggering Global Rush for South Korea’s Air-Defense System
South Korea’s Cheongung II (KM-SAM Block II) achieved a 96 percent interception rate during Iranian missile and drone attacks on the UAE, immediately reshaping Middle Eastern force posture and global missile-defense competition.
The Saudi veto was not an act of malice, but a rational response to a severe security dilemma. Five weeks prior, on March 27, 2026, an Iranian ballistic missile and drone strike hit PSAB directly. The attack injured 10 to 12 US service members, damaged several KC-135s, and destroyed a $500 million E-3G Sentry AWACS. Saudi officials explicitly warned the US that Project Freedom was poorly conceived because it would undoubtedly trigger more strikes on the exact bases hosting US forces.
The crisis established a new baseline rule for the Middle East: the United States can no longer use Gulf infrastructure for offensive operations without the absolute, explicit veto power of the host nations.
This vulnerability is compounded by a severe deficit in Saudi Arabia’s air defenses. Sustained Iranian missile campaigns depleted 86% of the Saudi Patriot PAC-3 interceptor inventory, dropping their stockpile from 2,800 interceptors down to just 400. Even if Lockheed Martin allocated its absolute maximum production of 620 interceptors per year solely to Saudi Arabia—an impossibility given global demands—it would take nearly four years to restock the Kingdom’s defenses.
Because of this deficit, Saudi Arabia remains heavily dependent on US troops at PSAB, who operate as essential maintenance crews and system operators for the radar data feeds. In the diplomatic fallout following the Saudi veto, Washington threatened to withdraw 2,300 troops and freeze PAC-3 resupplies. This coercive threat highly incentivized Riyadh to seek non-Western defense alternatives.
Source: Wajeeh Lion, Substack
July 7th, Zelensky asks NATO:
‘Please help us’: Zelenskyy presses NATO for air defense aid
Ukraine’s president said Patriot production is not enough and urged Europe to build mass-produced anti-ballistic systems “today, not years from now.”
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte speaks with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy during the NATO summit in Ankara on July 7, 2026. | Serdar Ozsoy/Getty Images
ANKARA — Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged allies Tuesday to make helping with air defense one of the key outcomes of NATO’s Ankara summit, warning that Ukraine still lacks the means to stop Russian ballistic missiles.
The appeal comes as Ukraine faces a growing shortage of Patriot interceptors, the U.S.-made missiles Kyiv relies on to shoot down Russian ballistic missiles.
“Please help us get more air defense missiles. This is our top priority right now,” Zelenskyy told the NATO Defense Industry Forum. “We are capable of doing everything else ourselves. But when it comes to air defense, we need our partners’ determination.”
Retired, living in the Scottish Borders after living most of my life in cities in England. I can now indulge my interest in all aspects of living close to nature in a wild landscape. I live on what was once the Iapetus Ocean which took millions of years to travel from the Southern Hemisphere to here in the Northern Hemisphere. That set me thinking and questioning and seeking answers.
In 1998 I co-wrote Millennium Countdown (US)/ A Business Guide to the Year 2000 (UK) see https://www.abebooks.co.uk/products/isbn/9780749427917
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