Oleshky Residents Face Six-Day Gap Before Truce Begins

The conflict in Ukraine has intensified around the Dnipro River, where a localized truce was announced for the occupied city of Oleshky. The White House declared on Friday that a temporary ceasefire will take effect on October 29, creating a window for humanitarian aid and civilian evacuation.

According to a White House statement, Russia and Ukraine agreed to halt military action in the city to allow aid convoys to enter and to prepare a safe passage for evacuation. The announcement credited Melania Trump with securing the arrangement, noting that she and her representative worked directly with both leaderships to finalize the terms. The deal aims to address a worsening food crisis reported by those remaining in the city.

Melania Trump described the situation as dire, stating that the front-line city is on the brink of disaster. She noted that the remaining population consists mostly of elderly people who require urgent medical attention, medicine, food, and clean water. Under the agreement, non-military teams from both nations will visit residents in their homes to arrange transport for those wishing to leave for either Russia or Ukraine.

The White House reported that Oleshky, located across the Dnipro River from Kherson, currently houses between 1,700 and 2,000 residents, including approximately 50 children. This represents a sharp decline from the pre-war population of roughly 24,000. Officials also stated that about 90 percent of the city was flooded following the destruction of the Kakhovka Dam.

Ukraine’s chief negotiator, David Arakhamia, confirmed that the humanitarian operation will commence once the ceasefire takes hold. He indicated that the accord follows a lengthy process involving both Melania Trump and Pope Leo. The Kremlin stated that the evacuation will take at least a few days and praised the effort to ease conditions in Oleshky. Russian Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov said forces will stop firing from 4 a.m. local time on October 27 to support the operation.

The delay between the announcement and the start of the truce leaves residents in a waiting period of six days. The Kremlin noted that President Vladimir Putin told Pope Leo he was ready to cooperate on the issue after a telephone conversation last week. This coordination reflects a diplomatic push that has involved high-level figures from both the United States and the Vatican.

Separately, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that technical-level talks between Ukraine, Russia, and the United States are scheduled for the first half of November in Abu Dhabi. Zelenskyy told the Hudson Institute that he had spoken with U.S. envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff. He emphasized that any peace deal would require strong security guarantees and ten years of funding for Ukraine’s army.

Fighting continued on Friday despite the announcements. Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport briefly suspended operations due to a Ukrainian drone threat, and Mayor Sergei Sobyanin reported that air defences downed 21 drones over two hours. The two sides also exchanged 270 prisoners each. Anton Kovalskyi, Ukraine’s acting prosecutor general, stated that more than 19,000 Ukrainian civilians, including 762 children, have been killed since the full-scale invasion began.