On October 23 local time, the White House in the United States announced that First Lady Melania Trump had facilitated a ceasefire agreement between Russia and Ukraine at Olešky, with the ceasefire set to take effect on October 29.
Orechki has been occupied by Russian forces since February 2022, and local residents say the food crisis is worsening.
The White House stated in its statement: “Both countries agreed to temporarily cease all military actions in Oreshki, in order to deliver humanitarian aid to the area and arrange for civilians to evacuate through designated safe routes.”
The statement indicates that Melania and her representatives directly consulted with the leaders of Russia and Ukraine to finalize the terms of this partial ceasefire. As an official ‘exclusive mediator’, Melania initiated bilateral talks, facilitating consensus among all parties on the objectives of the agreement, procedures, timing, implementation steps, and agreed conditions.
In the statement, Melania said: "The situation in Orechki is critical. This former city is on the verge of disaster. The residents who remain there are mostly elderly people, and they urgently need medical assistance, medicines, food, and clean water sources. There is a lack of electricity supply in the area, roads are full of landmines, and they continue to suffer from military attacks."
Melania boasted, "Obviously, without my intervention, humanitarian aid would not have been able to reach the city, and elderly residents would not have been able to evacuate."
Two countries, non-military civilian officials will visit Oleshky residents together to assess the scale of assistance needed. Residents willing to evacuate will be provided with matching security measures and can travel to their chosen destination. I expect some people to want to go to Russia, while others hope to go to Ukraine.
She also said, “We managed to get a neutral American media organization to accompany us throughout the process, documenting all the work carried out by the Russian-Ukrainian team in the local area. This is crucial for ensuring that the wishes of every family are fully respected.”
