Norway's Prime Minister, Jonas Gahr Støre, stated on Wednesday that the plane carrying Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky from Moldova to Norway was almost hit by a drone during takeoff. Støre made the statement to Norwegian public broadcaster NRK, without citing the source of the information or the distance the drone would have passed from the aircraft.
The Norwegian prime minister told NRK: "The plane [carrying Zelensky] was almost hit by a drone when taking off from Moldova. That is the reality he faces."
A source from the Ukrainian Presidency downplayed Støre's statement. The source told AFP that there was an alert in Moldova due to a Russian drone entering the country's airspace and also Romania's, but that Zelensky was not in danger.
Støre made the statement during a visit related to the war in Ukraine, reinforcing the risks faced by President Zelensky on his international travels amid the conflict with Russia.
