Russia may have deliberately directed drone toward Zelenskyy's plane, Moldova's ambassador says
Photo: Volodymyr Zelenskyy, President of Ukraine (Getty Images)
The Russian drone that violated Moldova's airspace on September 8 may have been deliberately flying toward Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's plane, according to Vladislav Kulminski, Moldova's ambassador to the United States.
According to the diplomat, the Moldovan government does not currently consider the incident to be accidental.
He also emphasizes that it is extremely difficult to believe that a Russian jet drone flew over the country's territory by chance at the very moment when the Ukrainian President's plane was at the airport.
"We do not believe in jet propelled drones just flying into Moldova’s territory for surveillance purposes while [the] Ukrainian president’s airplane is on the ground at the airport," Kulminski says.
At the same time, the ambassador emphasizes that it is too early to conclude, as the investigation into the incident is ongoing.
Incident involving Zelenskyy's plane and Russian drone in Moldova
The Moldovan government confirmed that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy's departure from the country to Norway on September 8 was delayed due to a Russian drone in the country's airspace.
Officials in Chisinau explained that Moldova's airspace had to be temporarily closed during that period due to the appearance of the drone. As a result, Zelenskyy's flight to Oslo was postponed.
Permission to take off was granted after it became known that the Russian drone had crashed and exploded near the village of Stari Mihăileni in the Rîșcani district. The crash site was located approximately 160 km from Chisinau International Airport.
In total, three departing flights and four arriving flights were delayed at the airport due to the air raid alert.
The country's Prime Minister, Jonas Gahr Støre, was the first to report the incident involving Zelenskyy’s plane en route to Norway.
"His plane was almost hit by a drone as it was about to take off from Moldova. That is the reality he is facing," says the Norwegian Prime Minister.
