Zelenskyy's plane 'almost hit' by drone days after Trump envoys Kushner, Witkoff visit Kyiv

KYIV, UKRAINE: Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Tuesday, September 8, was caught in a potentially dangerous aviation scare while leaving Moldova for Norway, with the Norwegian prime minister saying his aircraft was “almost hit” by a drone during takeoff.

The revelation comes at a particularly sensitive moment for Ukraine and its international allies. 

Just days earlier, President Donald Trump's envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff had met Zelenskyy in Kyiv after holding talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow as Washington pushed for progress toward ending the war.

Ukraine’s need for stronger air defenses was among the issues discussed.

Volodymyr Zelenskyy's aircraft faces frightening takeoff scare

Zelenskyy was traveling from Moldova to Norway on Tuesday when the reported incident occurred.

Speaking to NRK, Store said the Ukrainian president's plane was almost struck by a drone as it was taking off from Moldova.

“That is the reality he lives in,” Store said, emphasizing the extraordinary risks surrounding the Ukrainian leader even when he is travelling outside Ukraine.

The Norwegian prime minister did not provide a precise distance between the drone and Zelenskyy's aircraft.

He also did not identify the drone's operator or explain whether the aircraft had to alter its flight path because of the threat.

A separate Ukrainian account offered more context but initially stopped short of confirming that the drone was directly targeting the presidential aircraft.

A source in the Ukrainian presidency reportedly told AFP that there had been an alert after a Russian drone entered Moldovan and Romanian airspace.

The source characterized the situation as an airspace alert rather than providing details of a direct attempted strike on Zelenskyy's plane.

Scare days after Jared Kushner-Steve Witkoff visit

Just days before the reported drone scare, President Donald Trump’s special envoys, Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner, were in Kyiv as Washington stepped up its latest effort to restart Russia-Ukraine peace talks.

Their visit came after a roughly three-hour meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow, putting the two envoys in direct contact with both sides of the conflict within days.

In Kyiv, Witkoff and Kushner met with Zelenskyy and Ukrainian officials to discuss possible next steps toward ending the war.

The talks were described as constructive, but they produced no major breakthrough, with fundamental disputes over territory and security guarantees still unresolved.

For Washington, one of the immediate concerns was Ukraine’s ability to defend itself while negotiations continue. 

Zelenskyy pressed the US and its European partners for stronger air defenses, including Patriot missile systems, as Kyiv prepares for another winter of Russian attacks on its energy and civilian infrastructure.

Against that backdrop, the reported incident involving Zelenskyy’s aircraft adds another layer to an already tense security picture, coming just days after Trump’s envoys met with both Putin and Zelenskyy as Washington pushes to revive peace talks.