Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy landed in the Saudi city of Jeddah on Friday, marking his second trip to the kingdom within a month as Ukraine works to strengthen security partnerships and showcase its military technology throughout the Middle East during ongoing regional tensions.
Upon his arrival, Zelenskyy posted on social media platform X: “Yesterday, at a meeting with European leaders, we secured financial guarantees for our resilience. Today, we are advancing our agreements with Saudi Arabia in the areas of security, energy, and infrastructure.”
The Ukrainian leader indicated his intention to hold discussions with Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman during the visit. While Zelenskyy did not specify his destination in his own statements, Saudi state television confirmed his arrival in Jeddah.
This follows Zelenskyy’s previous trip to Saudi Arabia in late May, where Ukraine and the kingdom established a defense cooperation framework that the president characterized as creating extensive groundwork for future military contracts.
Following regional conflicts involving Iran, Ukraine has successfully negotiated agreements with multiple Middle Eastern nations by offering its technology and knowledge in intercepting Iranian long-range attack drones.
Zelenskyy has previously highlighted Ukraine’s support as producing positive outcomes across the Middle East region, and has also proposed that Kyiv could contribute its specialized knowledge to help restore safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz.
