Norway’s government has disclosed that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s aircraft came dangerously close to a Russian drone during takeoff earlier this week, an account Ukrainian officials promptly pushed back on as overstated. The episode has since drawn dueling narratives from Oslo and Kyiv, with additional details emerging from Norwegian officials and European press reports.
Zelensky traveled to Oslo on Tuesday ahead of the funeral of Norway’s King Harald V the following day. Dressed in black, he joined other world leaders and European royals behind the coffin during Wednesday’s ceremonies. But according to Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre, the journey itself was anything but routine.
A Drone at Takeoff
Støre told Norwegian state broadcaster NRK that Zelensky’s plane had been at risk as it departed Moldova. “His plane was nearly hit by a drone during takeoff in Moldova. That’s the reality he lives in,” the prime minister said, according to Breitbart’s report on the Norwegian statements.
The account gained further weight from Jens Stoltenberg, the former Norwegian prime minister and NATO secretary general who now serves as Norway’s finance minister. Stoltenberg said Zelensky himself recounted the incident during talks on Tuesday night. “He told us about it last night when we had a meeting with him,” Stoltenberg said. “I don’t dare go into the details about it, but he was delayed, and there were some threats against the plane. But I don’t know enough about the details to explain anything more.”
Ukraine’s government moved quickly to temper the Norwegian characterization, calling the account “exaggerated.” Moldovan officials offered a different sequence of events, saying the takeoff had been delayed because national airspace was closed to protect against a Russian drone entering from Ukrainian territory. According to Le Figaro, Moldovan authorities said the drone later crashed roughly 160 kilometers from Chișinău International Airport.
An F-16 Offer Reported
Britain’s The Daily Telegraph reported a further detail: during the drone incursion into Moldovan airspace on Tuesday, Zelensky personally offered to launch one of Ukraine’s F-16 fighter jets to help intercept the jet-powered weapon. The report, cited by Breitbart, adds another layer to the incident even as Kyiv disputes the severity of the threat.
The circumstances reflect the broader security constraints surrounding Zelensky’s travel. Because Ukrainian skies remain contested, his government’s executive transport jet is permanently based outside the country, typically operating from airports in Poland and Romania for foreign trips. Foreign dignitaries visiting Ukraine follow a similar pattern, flying into Poland and transferring to a special VIP train that carries them overnight to Kyiv.
Air Defense Talks in Oslo
While in Norway, Zelensky discussed developing Ukraine’s air defenses with representatives of the Norwegian and Finnish governments. High on the agenda was Freya, a proposed pan-European air defense missile system intended to perform a role similar to the American Patriot system but at significantly lower cost. Ukraine’s involvement in the project runs through its Fire Point defense technology company, best known for the Flamingo cruise missile. Ukraine has claimed to have used that missile in long-range deep strikes against Russian energy infrastructure in the Arctic Circle this week.
Zelensky has since traveled to Canada for talks with Prime Minister Mark Carney, where air defense and future support for Ukraine’s defense against the Russian invasion are again expected to top the agenda.
The competing accounts of Tuesday’s flight leave the precise level of danger unclear. Norwegian officials, including the country’s finance minister, have described threats to the aircraft based on their conversations with Zelensky. Ukrainian and Moldovan authorities have framed the disruption as a precautionary airspace closure rather than a near-miss. What is not in dispute is that the war’s reach extended, at least briefly, into the airspace around a presidential flight bound for a state funeral in Scandinavia.
Source: www.breitbart.com — https://www.breitbart.com/europe/2026/09/10/zelenskys-private-jet-nearly-hit-by-a-drone-says-norway/