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The State Department has signed off on a $1 billion deal to sell the UAE as many as 10,000 guidance kits that turn regular rockets into precision weapons capable of shooting down drones.

Getting into it: The announcement was made on Monday, alongside a separate $400 million sale to Kuwait for “repair and return services” for its Patriot missile systems, which have been central to knocking down Iranian attacks in the region. The UAE deal covers the Advanced Precision Kill Weapon System, made by BAE Systems, which converts unguided 70 mm rockets into precision-guided munitions, along with warheads, rocket motors and fuzes.

The kits allow forces to take out drones with relatively cheap rockets instead of firing expensive interceptor missiles at aircraft that cost a fraction of the price. The two approvals are part of more than $2.2 billion in arms sales cleared for the UAE, Kuwait and Egypt.

In a statement, the State Department said, “The proposed sale will improve the United Arab Emirates’ capability to meet current and future threats by developing and maintaining a strong and ready self-defense capability and improving interoperability with US forces.” They added that it “will support the foreign policy and national security objectives of the United States by improving the security of a major defense partner.”

This comes as Gulf countries that host US troops have been hit repeatedly by Iranian drones and missiles since the US and Israel launched the war on Iran in February, forcing them to spend heavily on air defenses to protect their cities, oil facilities, and American bases. Using guided rockets on drones is meant to stretch out limited supplies of high-end interceptors, which are expensive and slow to replace.