Ukraine has confirmed it is honoring a localized ceasefire brokered with the involvement of first lady Melania Trump, as a humanitarian operation begins in the Russian-occupied Ukrainian town of Oleshky. Dmytro Lubinets, Ukraine's parliamentary human rights commissioner and head of the Ukrainian negotiating team, confirmed Tuesday that Kyiv was complying with the agreement. "As head of the Ukrainian negotiating team, I confirm that the Ukrainian side is honouring its commitments," Lubinets said in a Facebook post.
The temporary truce is intended to allow humanitarian aid to reach Oleshky, in the southern Kherson region, and enable civilians to leave the front-line town safely. However, fighting has continued elsewhere in Ukraine, with Russian strikes reported in Kyiv and other cities. The agreement covers Oleshky, a town on the eastern bank of the Dnieper River that has been under Russian control since the early days of Moscow's full-scale invasion in February 2022.
Before the war, Oleshky had a population of approximately 24,000. The White House estimates that between 1,700 and 2,000 people remain, including around 50 children. Residents have faced severe shortages of food, medicine and clean water, while damaged infrastructure and the threat of further attacks have made daily life increasingly difficult.
Under the ceasefire agreement, Russian and Ukrainian representatives will coordinate a humanitarian operation involving the delivery of essential supplies and the evacuation of civilians who wish to leave. Russian military officials said their forces would stop shelling toward Kherson from 4 a.m. Moscow time on Tuesday to facilitate the operation.
Moscow also said it would undertake engineering reconnaissance and ensure safe passage for the humanitarian convoy during the operation, which is expected to take several days. The ceasefire was initially announced by the White House on October 23, with Melania Trump's office saying it would begin on October 29. However, Russian military officials later announced an earlier start date, and both sides confirmed the truce was underway on October 27.
The first lady's intervention follows her previous efforts to reunite children separated from their families during the war. According to the White House, the humanitarian crisis in Oleshky came to her attention during a private discussion at the Fostering the Future Together event in New York City during the 81st United Nations General Assembly in September. Melania Trump said she and her representative then used an existing communication channel with Russian and Ukrainian officials, established through earlier efforts to reunite children with their families.
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