Zelenskyy's plane almost hit by drone on way to Oslo, Norwegian PM says

Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store said a plane carrying Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy was almost hit by a drone as it took off from Moldova bound for Oslo. The reported near-miss came as Zelenskyy travelled to Norway for talks and a funeral visit, adding a security concern to an already high-profile diplomatic trip. Store said the incident happened during departure from Moldova, but did not give further details on the drone or how close it came to the aircraft.

Sponsored

Zelenskyy arrived in Oslo on Tuesday evening, according to the supplied report, and later held talks with Store in the Norwegian capital. The two leaders also met defence industry executives to discuss advancing a European anti-ballistic system codenamed FREYJA. Zelenskyy said the meeting focused on dividing responsibilities between governments and defence companies and on taking steps needed to produce the first practical results from the programme.

The reported incident comes against the backdrop of Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine, which has made air travel by senior Ukrainian officials a continuing security issue. The supplied report says Ukrainian regional officials reported at least eight people killed in Russian attacks on Wednesday, including along the Ukraine-Moldova border and in the southeast. That wider context helps explain why any threat to the aircraft of Ukraine's president is being treated as significant, even though the source material does not say whether the drone was linked to the war.

What remains unclear is who operated the drone, whether it was intercepted, and whether any investigation has been opened in Moldova or Norway. The supplied report also does not say how close the drone came to the aircraft or what security measures were in place during the flight. Further official clarification would be needed to establish the full circumstances of the near-miss and whether it affected the route or timing of the journey.