Humanitarian mission enters Oleshky as local ceasefire brokered by Melania Trump starts in southern Ukraine

Ceasefire opens aid window

The pause in fighting is scheduled to run through Saturday, and could last longer. Russian and Ukrainian negotiators and both countries’ militaries confirmed separately that it had begun.

Melania Trump led discussions with civilian negotiators from Russia and Ukraine after meeting U.N. officials who briefed her on Oleshky, her office said. Aid organizers said the planned delivery would precede the opening of evacuation corridors. The mission is planned ahead of another round of U.S.-brokered talks between Russia and Ukraine, expected next month and aimed at ending the war after more than 4½ years.

Residents face severe shortages

As many as 2,000 people are stranded in Oleshky, where food and medicine are dwindling. The U.N. said explosive mines and drone attacks in the area prevent them from leaving.

Oleshky lies across the Dnipro River from Kherson, the administrative capital of the partially occupied region. The town is about 550 kilometers (340 miles) southeast of Kyiv. Russian forces captured Oleshky on the first day of the full-scale invasion in 2022. Floodwaters inundated it in June 2023 after a dam collapsed.

Attacks continue in major cities

One person was killed and 10 were injured in the Kyiv attack, according to city officials. In Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, authorities said late Monday’s attacks killed two people and injured four.

Previous pauses faced mistrust

The ceasefire comes as deep mistrust between Russia and Ukraine has undermined earlier attempts to stop fighting. The humanitarian mission is intended to bring supplies to residents before people can leave Oleshky. Kherson was seized by Russian forces early in the 2022 invasion, then retaken by Ukrainian forces after Russia withdrew across the Dnipro River several months later.