Store told NRK the Ukrainian president's plane came close to a drone as it was preparing to depart from Moldova. "His plane nearly collided with a drone when it was supposed to take off from Moldova. This is the reality he is in," the broadcaster quoted Store as saying.
The prime minister gave no further details, according to Mediazona, and it is unclear from his remarks how he learned of the incident, whose drone nearly struck the presidential aircraft, or whether it was an accident or a deliberate attempt.
The Norwegian prime minister's office told Mediazona that there was a drone threat in Moldovan airspace that delayed Zelensky's plane en route to Oslo. It said it did not know how close the drones came to the aircraft.
Norwegian Finance Minister Jens Stoltenberg confirmed to NRK that Zelensky himself had spoken about a "threat" to his plane. According to Stoltenberg, the Ukrainian president was delayed and "there were certain threats to the plane." Stoltenberg did not provide details.
Zelensky arrived in Oslo on the evening of September 8 for the funeral of Norway's King Harald V. During the trip he also met with the country's authorities and, by his own account, with heads of defense companies from partner countries, with the anti-ballistic program "Freya" as the main topic.
Radio Liberty, citing the website adsbexchange.com, reported that Zelensky's plane left Chisinau 26 minutes after a Russian Shahed-type drone crossed Moldova's border and crashed near the village of Starye Mikhailyany, according to Moldova's Defense Ministry. The airspace violation occurred at about 16:20 local time, the drone returned to Ukrainian airspace at 16:37, and at 17:26 it again crossed the border and crashed in Moldova. Zelensky's plane departed at 17:52, according to the website.
Zelensky's office did not respond to NRK's questions about the incident. The Ukrainian president has not commented on the information.
Accounts differ: Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store and Finance Minister Jens Stoltenberg speak of a "near-collision" and the plane's delay due to a drone threat; the prime minister's office told Mediazona there was a delay but said it was unknown how close the drones were to the plane. Radio Liberty links the incident to a specific Shahed that crashed in Moldova, while Mediazona notes that the nature of the incident, whether an accident or an attempt, has not been established. Zelensky and his office have not commented on the incident.