Norway's PM: Zelenskyy's plane almost hit by drone

A drone nearly struck a plane carrying Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy from Moldova to Oslo, according to Norway's prime minister. However, a Ukrainian source said the threat may have been overstated.

Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Store said on Wednesday that a plane carrying Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy from Moldova to Oslo for the funeral of Norway's recently deceased King Harald V was almost hit by a drone.

"His flight was almost hit by a drone when it was taking off from Moldova. That is the reality he lives in," Store told Norwegian public broadcaster NRK, adding that Zelenskyy had left Norway for Canada, where he would meet with leaders in Ottawa.

Store provided no further details about the incident, which reportedly happened on Tuesday, as Zelenskyy was en route from Moldova to Norway.

Moldova's government spokesperson said later on Wednesday that the flight was delayed when the country's airspace was closed over a drone alert. The spokesperson said in a statement that Zelenskyy's plane was able to depart after a Russian drone came down on Moldovan territory. 

The Ukrainian president arrived in Oslo on Tuesday evening. In the Norwegian capital, he held talks with Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide and Finance Minister Jens Stoltenberg regarding military aid, including air-defense support, as well as civilian assistance.

On Wednesday, Zelenskyy then joined other foreign dignitaries at the funeral of King Harald.

Russian drone in Moldova

Meanwhile, neither Ukrainian authorities nor Zelenskyy himself have commented on the drone incident.

A claim that Zelenskyy was at risk was described as "exaggerated" by the source.

According to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW) — a US think tank — a Russian drone flew in Moldovan and Romanian airspace for about an hour on Tuesday.

The ISW said the defense ministries of Moldova and Romania both reported that a Shahed drone entered Moldovan airspace from Ukraine, flew over Romania, and then returned to Moldova, where it crashed. 

However, it is unclear whether this was the same drone mentioned by Store and the Moldovan government spokesperson.

Edited by: Dmytro Hubenko

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