In what ways does the widespread availability of cheap drone technology compel oil-rich countries to overhaul their military budgets and doctrines?
Cheap, off-the-shelf drones change the math for oil-producing nations. For decades, these states protected vast energy infrastructure using expensive, heavy hardware like manned fighter jets and armored divisions. These assets are difficult to scale and even harder to hide. Now, low-cost loitering munitions can target a single, high-value pipeline valve or a desalination plant from kilometers away for a fraction of the cost of a missile defense system.
This shift forces a move away from
