Norway's government clarifies PM's statement on threat to Zelensky's plane
Norwegian officials say a drone incident over Moldova delayed President Zelensky's flight to Oslo, though it remains unclear whether the plane itself was directly threatened. Zelensky reportedly informed Norway's leadership about the incident during a meeting on the evening of September 8.
A state secretary at the Norwegian prime minister's office told reporters that the drone incident over Moldova mentioned by PM Jonas Gahr Store did delay the departure of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky's flight from Chisinau to Oslo. However, the official said it remains unknown how close the drone actually came to threatening the president's plane directly.
The official said there was a drone-related threat in Moldovan airspace that caused Zelensky's flight to be delayed, adding that such risks are something the Ukrainian president lives with daily. The exact distance between the drone and the aircraft is unknown.
Norway's finance minister, former NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, said Norwegian officials learned of the incident from Zelensky himself during a meeting on the evening of September 8. He said he did not have enough detailed information to elaborate further, but confirmed there had been some kind of threat to the plane that caused the delay.
Background
Earlier, Norwegian PM Store had said a Russian drone "almost hit" the plane carrying Ukraine's president and first lady as it departed Moldova for Oslo. Around the time Zelensky's flight left Chisinau, Moldova had partially closed its airspace due to a Russian drone that had entered the country. No damage was reported near Chisinau airport. The drone subsequently left Moldovan airspace, heading toward Romania.
Moldova's defense ministry said the drone was believed to be a Shahed-type UAV, and that the airspace violation occurred around 16:20 local time. Later reports indicated a drone had crashed in a field, though its type was not specified. That same day, Romania scrambled fighter jets over a suspected airspace violation and temporarily halted operations at Iași airport.
