A truce between Russia and Ukraine, at least in one of the areas hardest hit by the war. According to an announcement from the White House, the agreement was secured by Melania Trump, who reportedly led personal contacts with officials in Moscow and Kyiv to arrange a temporary suspension of fighting in the city of Oleshky.
The ceasefire will take effect on October 29 and will apply exclusively to the city area, located along the Dnipro River and currently under Russian occupation. The agreement is aimed at allowing humanitarian aid to enter and organizing the evacuation of civilians through corridors agreed upon by both sides.
The situation on the ground is particularly dire. Those remaining in Oleshky are mostly elderly residents, with limited supplies of medicine, food and drinking water. Electricity is available only intermittently, while mined roads and ongoing fighting make movement extremely difficult.
“The situation in Oleshky is dire,” Melania Trump said, explaining that without diplomatic intervention it would have been impossible to guarantee the arrival of aid and to get the most vulnerable people to safety.
According to the White House’s account, the first lady personally oversaw the negotiations, working with Russian and Ukrainian authorities to agree on the timing, operational details and conditions of the suspension of hostilities.
Melania Trump also announced the involvement of an independent American organization tasked with accompanying Russian and Ukrainian teams on the ground and documenting the operations, ensuring that the wishes of the families involved are respected.
The truce comes after recent appeals from Pope Leo, who had raised the situation in Oleshky during talks with Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky, calling for intervention to protect the civilian population.
This is not a general ceasefire in the war between Russia and Ukraine, but an agreement limited to a single city and aimed at humanitarian operations. A first diplomatic result that, starting October 29, will need to be confirmed on the ground.
