ByCORINNE BAUM, REUTERS

Russia targeted Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky’s plane twice in the same week, he told CBS on Tuesday.

"In Moldova, my presidential jet was there, and that's why they attacked Moldova," Zelensky said. "When we went back home, again through Chisinau, they did the same."

On September 9, a Moldovan government spokesperson said the departure of Zelensky's aircraft for Norway was delayed as Moldovan authorities closed the country's airspace over a drone alert.

Two Russian drones entered Moldovan airspace on that day. One landed in a field north of the capital, triggering a fire, while the second carried on into Romanian airspace.

Zelensky had not previously spoken of the second incident.

A Ukraine-Moldova border crossing сheck point Starokozache, damaged during a Russian drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Odesa region, in this handout picture released September 9, 2026.
A Ukraine-Moldova border crossing сheck point Starokozache, damaged during a Russian drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Odesa region, in this handout picture released September 9, 2026. (credit: Press service of the State Border Guard Service of Ukraine/Handout via REUTERS)

Moldovan authorities said two drones entered the country's airspace on Monday, September 14, for about 10 minutes each over the course of an hour before noon local time.

Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere said Wednesday that Zelensky’s plane was “almost hit" by a drone when taking off from Moldova on Tuesday.

"His plane was almost hit by a drone as it was about to take off from Moldova. That is the reality he is facing," Stoere said.

Zelensky added that he believes the drones were an attempt to intimidate him and other European leaders.

Russia struck Ukrainian passenger train

This comes after Russia struck a Ukrainian passenger train shortly after a delegation of European and American diplomats used the same line. 

Several foreign dignitaries were returning to Poland by train after attending the YES security conference in Kyiv when they were awoken at 5 a.m. and prepared to evacuate. A train car full of European officials left earlier than scheduled, leading Ukrainian officials to believe that they were targeted by the Kremlin.

If the strike was intended for the foreign officials, it would mark another significant escalation in the war on Ukraine and Russian President Vladimir Putin’s aggression toward the West.

"Maybe they didn't know that some Americans had been there, or maybe, conversely, they knew, because I don't trust them. I think that they knew," Zelenskyy told CBS News.

"That's why, Europeans, Americans, the big delegation had been in this train, and they attacked."