Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy accused Russia of trying to target his presidential plane twice in recent weeks in Moldova, saying the incidents were part of a policy aimed at intimidating him and other foreign leaders. In an interview broadcast on Tuesday, Zelenskyy said the first incident occurred while his presidential plane was in Moldova.
Zelenskyy's account of the second incident
He added that another incident occurred as he was returning to Ukraine via the Moldovan capital, Chisinau, when one or two drones entered Moldovan airspace. Ukrainian officials confirmed that members of the presidential delegation were safe. Officials did not determine at the time whether the drones' entry was deliberate, but Zelenskyy considered it part of a Russian strategy targeting him and foreign leaders.
Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre had said that Zelenskyy's plane had “nearly been hit” by a drone while flying in Moldovan airspace after taking off for Oslo on 9 September, saying the incident reflected the circumstances facing the Ukrainian president.
A train carrying foreign officials targeted
In a separate incident on Sunday, a Russian drone struck a passenger train carrying foreign figures visiting Ukraine, including European officials and former US Central Intelligence Agency Director David Petraeus, prompting their evacuation near the Polish border. Commenting on the train attack, Zelenskyy said: “Perhaps they did not know that some Americans were there, or perhaps they did, because I do not trust them.”
“I believe they knew,” he said, referring to the presence of a large delegation of Europeans and Americans on board. The incidents came amid an increase in sightings of unidentified drones over European skies in recent months, with some believed to be linked to Russia.
