Melania Trump brokers Oleshky ceasefire as Ukraine and Russia eye new peace talks

A local truce for Oleshky

The White House announced on Friday, 23 October, that Ukraine and Russia had agreed to a local ceasefire in Oleshky, a town on the left bank of the Dnipro across from Kherson that Russian forces have held since 2022. The pause is due to begin on Tuesday, 27 October, at 4:00 Moscow time, the hour Russian authorities give because they have placed the town on Moscow time, which Volkskrant puts at 3:00 Ukrainian time. The stated aim is to let aid reach the town first and then allow evacuations of elderly residents.

Melania Trump says she brokered the arrangement after talks with negotiators from both countries and describes conditions in the town as dire.

It was abundantly clear that without my intervention, the possibility to bring humanitarian aid into the city and to evacuate the elderly would be impossible.

Under the plan, civil leaders from both countries would visit residents in their homes to judge what help they need, and people who want to leave would receive coordinated transport to a destination of their choice. Melania Trump expects some to head to Russia and others to Ukraine, and an independent American media organisation is to accompany the teams on the ground. Volkskrant estimates 1,700 to 2,000 people remain in the town, cut off since late May when water and food deliveries stopped and access roads were mined.

Who gets the credit

The Vatican says Pope Leo XIV telephoned Vladimir Putin on 16 October and asked him to arrange a ceasefire that would allow food and aid into Oleshky, and the Kremlin confirmed that call. The pope then spoke with Volodymyr Zelenskyy three days later, and Vatican Secretary of State Pietro Parolin later credited the pope with starting the effort.

The White House framing drew online criticism, with former Biden aide Chris Jackson accusing it of ignoring the pope. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed the arrangement and credited Melania Trump with helping to broker it, while Ukrainian human rights ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets confirmed the deal and her mediation. Donald Trump praised his wife's role and said she had contacted both sides.

What she wants to do is save children.

Doubts on the ground

Aid workers are not convinced. Stefan Vorontsov of the Ukrainian aid group Humanity wrote on X that he has lost faith in any agreement after 4.5 years of supporting people leaving occupied areas, and he fears provocations and unacceptable conditions for evacuations. Volkskrant notes that earlier truces, including ones tied to holidays and energy infrastructure, were broken repeatedly. It is unclear how residents would reach Ukraine, even though the White House says transport will be arranged. Russian military blogger Wladimir Romanow criticised Valery Gerasimov for announcing the truce instead of the defence ministry securing the area, and Russian special envoy Rodion Miroschnik said it is hard to tell whether the truce will affect talks on political or military questions.

Stalled talks and the wider war

Steve Witkoff, the US presidential envoy, travelled between Oslo and St Petersburg this week to meet Zelenskyy and Putin, and secured a commitment to resume negotiations. Putin said he agreed in principle to restart talks, yet within hours Russia launched a deadly barrage of ballistic missiles and drones on Kyiv, and Moscow said it had destroyed more than 800 Ukrainian drones heading toward its cities on the same day. A Kremlin spokesman said the next round would likely take place in Abu Dhabi around mid-November, which would be the fourth round brokered by the Trump administration after Geneva in February.

Substantive gaps remain. Moscow still wants Ukrainian land it does not fully hold, and Kyiv is insisting on firm assurances against another invasion. AP reports that Washington's recent diesel arrangement with Russia and Trump's rejection of new sanctions have strengthened Moscow's hand, while Ukraine's drones lost satellite support after Kyiv turned down a US request to stop strikes on Russian oil infrastructure.