Trump-brokered truce opens window for Oleshky aid run
A temporary ceasefire took effect in southern Ukraine to allow supplies to reach a besieged town while missile strikes continued elsewhere.
By Madison Morris ·
Ukraine and Russia observed a localized pause in fighting beginning at 3 a.m. Tuesday in the Kherson region. The ceasefire was arranged to facilitate a humanitarian mission into the Russian-occupied town of Oleshky.
U.S. First Lady Melania Trump led negotiations with civilian representatives from both sides following briefings from U.N. officials. Her office stated that these talks established the terms for the temporary truce. The aid convoy is scheduled to arrive later this week, preceding a new round of U.S.-mediated peace discussions expected next month.
The agreement covers a period through Saturday, with the possibility of extension. Negotiators confirmed the start of the ceasefire in separate official statements. Previous attempts at ceasefires have failed due to deep mistrust between the two militaries.
Up to 2,000 civilians remain stranded in Oleshky. The United Nations reports that dwindling food and medicine supplies, combined with explosive mines and drone attacks, have prevented residents from leaving the town.
The aid mission will deliver doctors, medicines, food, and water to the area before evacuation corridors are opened. Oleshky sits across the Dnipro River from Kherson, the administrative capital of the region. Russian forces captured the town on the first day of their full-scale invasion in 2022. In June 2023, floodwaters from a collapsed dam inundated the settlement.
While the truce held in the south, missile attacks resumed in the capital. Minutes after 3 a.m., ballistic missile explosions shook Kyiv, triggering air alerts across the country. Late Monday, Russian missiles damaged the grounds of a university in Kyiv, killing one person and injuring ten. In Kharkiv, authorities reported two deaths and four injuries from attacks late Monday.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy posted online shortly after the strikes, stating that Russia showed a desire to kill and continue waging war. Oleshky is located approximately 550 kilometers southeast of Kyiv, where the Dnipro River separates opposing forces.
Source: Newsday
