Moldova does not consider the appearance of a drone during Zelensky's departure accidental

Zelenskyy and his wife exit the aircraft after landing in Norway / president.gov.ua
Фото: Zelenskyy and his wife exit the aircraft after landing in Norway / president.gov.ua

The Moldovan authorities do not consider the appearance of a Russian jet drone in the country's airspace at the moment when the plane of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky was at Chisinau airport before departure to Norway to be accidental. At the same time, the investigation has not yet established whether the drone was aimed directly at the Ukrainian president.

This was stated by Moldovan Ambassador to the US Vladislav Kulminski in an interview with CNN.

The incident occurred on September 8, when Zelensky was traveling from Chisinau to Oslo for a farewell ceremony for King Harald V of Norway.

After detecting the Russian jet drone, Moldova temporarily closed its airspace. At that moment, Zelensky's plane remained at Chisinau International Airport and was able to depart only after confirmation of the drone's crash.

The drone fell and exploded approximately 160 km from the airport. Thus, new data clarify initial reports that Zelensky's plane allegedly nearly collided with the drone directly during takeoff.

"We do not believe that jet drones just fly into Moldova's territory for reconnaissance purposes at the moment when the Ukrainian president's plane is at the airport", - said Kulminski.

According to him, it is well known that Zelensky uses Chisinau Airport and Moldova's airspace for foreign trips.

"Most likely, it's not a coincidence", - states the Moldovan diplomat.

However, when asked whether the Moldovan authorities believe that the drone could have been aimed directly at the President of Ukraine, Kulminski replied that it is too early to make such a conclusion. The investigation of the incident is ongoing.

According to him, the current case may also not be the first similar episode during Zelensky's foreign trips through Moldova's territory.

Earlier, Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stоre stated that Zelensky's plane "was almost hit by a drone" during departure from Moldova. He did not specify how close the drone was to the presidential aircraft.

The Kremlin has not commented on the incident.

Based on materials from: CNN

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