Aid for 1,700 to 2,000 Residents in Oleshky Delayed Until Oct. 29

Humanitarian aid for the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky will not arrive until Oct. 29, according to a White House announcement made Friday. The temporary ceasefire allows relief teams to enter the zone and facilitates the evacuation of civilians. This schedule creates a six-day gap between the announcement and the start of operations for the remaining population.

The White House credited Melania Trump with securing the agreement after direct negotiations with Russian and Ukrainian leaders. The arrangement involves a localized truce where both sides cease military action to enable aid delivery and prepare a safe passage for evacuees. The statement noted that non-military teams from both nations will visit households to organize transport for residents wishing to leave for either Russia or Ukraine.

Oleshky is situated across the Dnipro River from Kherson. The city’s population has dropped from approximately 24,000 before the war to an estimated 1,700 to 2,000 people today. This group includes about 50 children and is predominantly elderly residents who require medical care, food, and clean water. Officials reported that 90 per cent of the city remains flooded following the destruction of the Kakhovka Dam.

Melania Trump described the current conditions as dire in the official statement. She emphasized that the front-line city is on the brink of disaster. David Arakhamia, Ukraine’s chief negotiator, confirmed on Telegram that the humanitarian operation will commence once the ceasefire holds. He noted that the deal resulted from a long process involving both Melania Trump and Pope Leo.

The Kremlin stated that the evacuation process requires several days. Russian Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov announced that Russian forces will halt firing from 4 a.m. local time on Oct. 27 to support the initiative. President Vladimir Putin spoke by telephone with Pope Leo last week and indicated readiness to cooperate on the issue. The Kremlin praised Melania Trump’s role in easing conditions for the trapped residents.

Separate diplomatic efforts continue in parallel with the Oleshky truce. President Volodymyr Zelenskyy confirmed that technical-level talks involving Ukraine, Russia, and the United States are scheduled for the first half of November in Abu Dhabi. Zelenskyy spoke with U.S. envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff after their recent meeting with President Putin. He stated that any final peace agreement must include strong security guarantees and ten years of funding for the Ukrainian army.

Fighting persisted in other areas on Friday. Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport briefly suspended operations due to a drone threat. Mayor Sergei Sobyanin reported that air defenses shot down 21 drones over the capital in a two-hour period. The two sides also exchanged 270 prisoners each. Anton Kovalskyi, Ukraine’s acting prosecutor general, reported that more than 19,000 Ukrainian civilians, including 762 children, have died since the full-scale invasion began.