Norwegian PM: Plane Carrying Zelenskyy Almost Collided with Drone During Takeoff

A plane carrying Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy nearly collided with a drone during takeoff, the Prime Minister of Norway has revealed.

According to Reuters, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre told Norway's public broadcaster NRK on the 9th (local time) that "the plane carrying Zelenskyy to Norway was nearly struck by a drone just as it was attempting to take off from Moldova the previous day," adding, "This is the reality he faces."

However, Prime Minister Støre did not mention the source of this information or how close the drone came at the time.

Moldovan authorities have not issued any specific stance regarding Prime Minister Støre's remarks.

In Moldova, the takeoff and landing of aircraft at the capital's Chisinau Airport were temporarily suspended on the 8th after two Russian-origin drones entered Moldovan airspace.

Data from the flight tracking website Flightradar24 showed that several flights heading to Chisinau landed at airports outside Moldova or held in the air on that day.

Reuters reported that one of the drones that breached Moldovan airspace the previous day crashed into a field and caused a fire, while another continued flying and entered Romanian airspace.

Meanwhile, President Zelenskyy arrived in Oslo the previous evening to attend the funeral of Norway's King Harald V held on this day, where he met with Prime Minister Støre and other senior Norwegian cabinet ministers to discuss military support, including air defense systems for Ukraine.

Norway, which shares land and maritime borders with Russia, is considered one of Ukraine's strongest supporters in Europe.

Prime Minister Støre stated that President Zelenskyy departed Oslo after the funeral of King Harald V to travel to Canada.

(Photo: Getty Images)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.