Norwegian PM says drone nearly hit Zelensky's plane in Moldova; Ukrainian side calls claim 'exaggerated'
Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre said on September 9 that a drone nearly struck the plane carrying President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as it departed Moldova for Oslo on September 8, where Zelenskyy was to attend the funeral of King Harald V. Norwegian and Ukrainian officials later said the flight was delayed by a Moldovan airspace closure caused by Russian drones, and that it remained unknown how close the drones came to the aircraft. Zelenskyy attended the funeral on September 9 and left Norway shortly afterward.
Key points
- Norwegian PM Støre told NRK on September 9 that a drone 'almost hit' Zelenskyy's plane as it departed Moldova for Oslo on September 8.
- Moldova's Ministry of Defence said a drone, preliminarily identified as a Shahed-type UAV, entered Moldovan airspace at about 16:20 local time on September 8, prompting a partial airspace closure.
- Moldovan officials reported that one of two Russian drones crashed in a field in Riscani district roughly 160 km from Chișinău; the other crossed into Romanian airspace, prompting Romania to scramble jets and suspend operations at Iași airport.
- Zelenskyy's flight was among three departures and four arrivals delayed by the closure; a source in the Office of the President said the plane took off at 17:30, after drones disappeared from radar at 17:15.
- A source in the Ukrainian President's Office told AFP that claims Zelenskyy was in danger were 'exaggerated,' while Norwegian State Secretary Bhanuja Rasiah said it was unknown how close the drones were to the aircraft.
- In Oslo, Zelenskyy met Støre and former NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg to discuss air defence for Ukraine and the European FREYJA anti-ballistic missile initiative.
- Zelenskyy attended King Harald V's funeral in Oslo on September 9, walking behind the coffin with other heads of state, and left Norway shortly after the ceremony.
Why it matters
The episode involves a potential threat to the aircraft of a head of state traveling during an active war, and it coincides with documented Russian drone incursions into the airspace of Moldova and NATO member Romania. It also brought air defence and the European FREYJA anti-ballistic initiative onto the agenda of Zelenskyy's meetings in Oslo. The contrasting accounts from Støre and from Norwegian and Ukrainian officials have made the public characterization of the threat itself a matter of dispute.
What happened
On September 8, around 16:20 local time, a drone preliminarily identified as a Shahed-type UAV entered Moldovan airspace from the direction of Ukraine, according to Moldova's Ministry of Defence. Moldova partially closed its central airspace, delaying three outbound and four inbound flights, including the plane carrying President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, who was traveling to Oslo to attend the funeral of King Harald V. Moldovan authorities said two Russian drones were involved that day: one crashed in a sunflower field in Riscani district, roughly 160 km from Chișinău, causing fires but no injuries; the other crossed into Romanian airspace, where Romania scrambled fighter jets — including two Spanish Air and Space Forces F-18s — and temporarily suspended operations at Iași airport. Moldovan police later said drone fragments showed characteristics similar to a Geran-type drone. Zelenskyy's plane took off at 17:30, after drones disappeared from Moldovan radar at 17:15, according to a source in the Ukrainian President's Office cited by Suspilne. On September 9, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre told NRK that the plane had been 'almost hit' by a drone. Norwegian State Secretary Bhanuja Rasiah and a source in the Ukrainian President's Office subsequently said it was unknown whether the drone posed a direct threat to the aircraft, with the Ukrainian source calling Støre's framing 'exaggerated.' Zelenskyy attended King Harald V's funeral in Oslo on September 9, walking in the procession with other heads of state, and left Norway shortly afterward. During the visit he met Støre, Stoltenberg and Norwegian Foreign Minister Espen Barth Eide, with discussions focused on air defence for Ukraine, military support and the European FREYJA anti-ballistic missile initiative, including a meeting with heads of defence companies from partner countries.
How Ukrainian sources describe it
Ukrainian-language reporting, particularly later accounts, frames the incident primarily as a Moldovan airspace closure that delayed Zelenskyy's flight, rather than as a near-miss. Ukrainian outlets carry the Office of the President's line that the claim of danger was 'exaggerated,' and note that the plane and the drones did not share airspace simultaneously — the Ukrainian side waited until the drones vanished from radar before clearing the plane for takeoff at 17:30, according to data cited by Suspilne. Ukrainian coverage also ties the episode to the broader pattern of Russian drone incursions into Moldova and Romania, and to a separate Russian strike on border infrastructure on the Ukraine–Moldova border overnight on September 8–9. Zelenskyy's substantive agenda in Oslo — air defence talks with Støre, Stoltenberg and Espen Barth Eide, and the FREYJA initiative — receives prominent attention in Ukrainian media.
How international sources describe it
International outlets, including English, Spanish, German, French, Arabic and Azerbaijani media, lead with Støre's NRK interview, emphasizing that the plane was 'almost hit' and quoting his remark that the episode illustrates 'the reality he lives in.' Coverage tends to focus on the symbolic weight of a threat to a wartime president's plane en route to a royal funeral, with less detail on Moldovan airspace procedures or the Ukrainian rebuttal. Several international pieces cite Reuters and the Institute for the Study of War on the separate Russian Shahed drone's path through Moldovan and Romanian airspace as context, and note Norwegian officials' later clarification that the drone's proximity to the aircraft is unknown — usually framed as a walk-back rather than as the lead.
Where reporting differs
Sources disagree on whether the drone posed a direct threat to Zelenskyy's plane: Støre said it 'almost hit' the aircraft, while Norwegian State Secretary Bhanuja Rasiah, subsequent Norwegian government clarifications, and a source in the Ukrainian President's Office said it was unknown whether the drone was a direct threat and described the danger claim as 'exaggerated.' One source dates the flight delay to September 7, while the overwhelming majority place it on September 8. Reports are also inconsistent on whether one or two Russian drones were involved in the Moldovan airspace violation. A Ukrainian President's Office source told Suspilne that Zelenskyy's plane and the drone were not in the air at the same time and that the Ukrainian side waited until the drones disappeared from radar before clearing the plane for takeoff, a sequence that sits in tension with Støre's framing of a near-collision during takeoff.
Background
King Harald V of Norway died on August 28 at the age of 89; his state funeral took place in Oslo on September 9. Zelenskyy traveled to Oslo via Moldova to attend the funeral and to hold meetings with Norwegian leaders on air defence and the FREYJA anti-ballistic initiative. On the night of September 8–9, Russian drones struck border infrastructure on the Ukraine–Moldova border; Moldovan President Maia Sandu condemned a Russian drone strike on a border crossing with Ukraine that killed two people. A previous incident in December 2025 saw four unknown military-type drones violate the no-fly zone over Dublin Airport in the direction Zelenskyy's plane had previously taken; the Office of the President said that episode did not affect the visit.