Zelensky alleges that Russia attempted to attack his presidential plane with drones on two recent occasions

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky revealed Tuesday in an exclusive interview with CBS News that Russian forces attempted to attack the plane he was traveling in with drones on two occasions in recent weeks.

The incidents occurred during his flights through Moldovan airspace. "In Moldova, my presidential plane was there, and that's why they attacked Moldova," Zelensky explained when describing the first incident.

"When we returned home, once again over Chisinau, they did the same thing," the president added, referring to a second incident not previously reported, in which one or two drones again entered Moldovan territory during his return flight.

Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre had previously confirmed that Zelensky's aircraft was "about to be hit" by a drone as it took off for Oslo on September 9.

Although the Ukrainian delegation emerged unharmed, Zelensky said these actions are part of a deliberate Moscow tactic to sow panic among leaders visiting the region.

Attacks on international delegations and tension within NATO

The drone offensive has also targeted international delegations on Ukrainian soil. Last Sunday, a Russian drone attack struck a passenger train near the Polish border carrying high-ranking European officials and former CIA Director David Petraeus, forcing its immediate evacuation.

"Maybe they didn't know that some Americans were there, or maybe, on the contrary, they did know—because I don't trust them. I think they knew," Zelensky told CBS News regarding the attack on the train. "That's why—Europeans, Americans, the large delegation—had been on this train, and they attacked."

Aerial harassment along Europe's eastern borders has steadily increased in recent months. In an event without recent precedent, NATO fighter jets shot down a drone that violated Lithuanian airspace for the first time on Tuesday, Lithuanian military authorities confirmed.