Zelenskyy's plane almost hit by drone while leaving Moldova, says Norway PM

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was travelling to Norway for the funeral of King Harald V when the plane carrying him was "almost hit" by a drone while taking off from Moldova on Tuesday, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere said on Wednesday.

"His plane was almost hit by a drone as it was about to take off from Moldova. That is the reality he is facing," Stoere told Norwegian public broadcaster NRK. He did not disclose the details or say how close the drone came to Zelenskyy's aircraft.

RUSSIAN DRONE INCURSION IN MOLDOVA

The incident involving Zelenskyy's plane has surfaced as Moldova itself faced an aerial intrusion on Tuesday.

Arrivals and departures at Chisinau Airport were temporarily suspended after two Russian drones entered Moldovan airspace, according to flight-tracking data from Flightradar24. Several flights heading for the Moldovan capital were diverted to airports outside the country, while others were forced to remain in holding patterns.

One of the drones came down in a field and sparked a fire, while the other continued into Romanian airspace. Moldovan President Maia Sandu called the drone incursions a "serious threat to people's lives". She also condemned a separate attack on a border crossing with Ukraine that killed two people.

ZELENSKYY HOLDS TALKS ON AIR DEFENCE

Zelenskyy arrived in Oslo on Tuesday evening and met Stoere, Finance Minister Jens Stoltenberg and Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide. Their discussions included Norwegian military assistance to Ukraine, particularly air-defence support, as well as civilian aid.

Stoere had said before the meeting that air defence would be a major focus of his talks with the Ukrainian President.

Zelenskyy also met defence industry executives alongside Stoere to discuss the FREYJA initiative, a proposed European anti-ballistic defence system. In a social media post, Zelenskyy said the discussions focused on dividing responsibilities between governments and defence companies and agreeing on steps to move the programme towards its first practical results.

"We expect to see the first practical results. I am grateful to Norway for hosting this meeting. I thank our partners for their readiness to work together. Protecting Europe’s skies is our shared responsibility," said the Ukrainian president.

Ukraine is facing Russian missile and drone attacks more than four years after Moscow launched its full-scale invasion in February 2022.

On Wednesday, Zelenskyy joined other foreign dignitaries at the funeral of King Harald V in central Oslo. The Norwegian monarch died on August 28 at the age of 89.

Zelenskyy marched behind the king's coffin alongside other heads of state and senior officials before leaving Norway shortly after the funeral.

Stoere told NRK that the Ukrainian President was heading to Canada for talks with Canadian leaders.

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