A plane carrying Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy from Moldova to Oslo was “almost hit by a drone” shortly after take-off, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre said on Wednesday.
“His flight was almost hit by a drone when it was taking off from Moldova. That is the reality he lives in,” Støre told Norwegian media.
The Norwegian prime minister did not provide details about the alleged incident or identify who was behind the drone.
A source in the Ukrainian presidency, however, played down the account, telling AFP that there had been an alert in Moldova after a Russian drone entered Moldovan and Romanian airspace.
“It was an alert in Moldova when a Russian (drone) entered Moldovan and Romanian airspace,” he said.
The source described as
“exaggerated” the claim that Zelenskyy himself was at risk.
Zelenskyy Seeks Air Defence Support
Zelenskyy arrived in Oslo on Tuesday evening and held talks with Støre and other senior Norwegian officials on military and civilian assistance to Ukraine, including air-defence support.
Støre said the discussions continued into Wednesday morning, with the two sides exploring ways to strengthen Ukraine’s air-defence capabilities.
“We were out yesterday until past midnight, talking about how we can cooperate to provide air defence for Ukraine against the terrible things that are happening,” Støre said.
He added that Ukraine’s defence industry was working with Norway to explore whether Kyiv could eventually develop and build air-defence systems domestically.
“The industry is cooperating to see whether it is possible not only to provide air defence for Ukraine but also to develop an industrial solution that would enable them to build air defence systems themselves,” the Norwegian leader added.
Zelenskyy later attended the funeral of Norway’s King Harald, who died on August 28 aged 89, alongside several other foreign dignitaries.
Drone Alert Amid Peace Push
The reported incident comes as Russia and Ukraine remain locked in an active war, while diplomatic efforts to revive stalled peace talks gather pace.
US special envoy Steve Witkoff and President Donald Trump’s son-in-law, Jared Kushner, recently returned from diplomatic meetings in Moscow and Kyiv as Washington stepped up efforts to restart the peace process.
The two US officials, who have been leading key American negotiations, discussed possible proposals aimed at bringing the conflict to an end.
After leaving Norway, Zelenskyy travelled to Canada for further talks with leaders there, Støre said.
(With inputs from agencies)
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