About 800 residents of the city of Oleshky in southern Ukraine, which is under Russian occupation, were evacuated. Melania Trump, the wife of the former President of the United States, announced this news and is recognized as one of the mediators of the ceasefire. This mission was coordinated by Ukraine's Human Rights Commissioner, Dmytro Lubinets, and his Russian counterpart, Yana Lantatova.
Situation of Oleshky Residents
Most of those evacuated chose to move to Ukrainian-controlled territories, while some expressed a willingness to transfer to Russia. According to reports from the Kherson regional administration, over 1000 people still remain in Oleshky, and food, water, and medicine have been provided for them.
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Melania Trump deemed this mission successful and expressed gratitude on social media to Kyiv and Moscow for their leadership and cooperation. She stated that the Oleshky ceasefire could inspire "lasting peace between the two nations."
Challenges and Expectations
Dmytro Lubinets also wrote on the Telegram platform that "maintaining this mechanism of cooperation is important" and added that "we are exploring options with Yana Lantatova for continuing similar humanitarian efforts." However, the Kremlin quickly downplayed any expectations in this regard, announcing that there are currently no further plans for humanitarian missions.
Just one day after the ceasefire ended, Ukraine's General Staff announced that Russia had used this humanitarian pause to strengthen its positions. They also stated that Russia had made troop changes, expanded its anti-drone defenses, and brought in new ammunition.
Reports broadcast by Sky News showed images of heavy equipment, weapons, and food being transported by the Russian army to Oleshky and neighboring villages. Volodymyr Viatrovych, from the European Solidarity party of Ukraine, wrote on Facebook that "it was quite clear that the Ukrainian government and international mediators knew that Russia could use this pause."
He believes that Russia will do the same if Kyiv withdraws its forces from the Donetsk region. He wrote: "Russia will use this to prepare for its next attack and further destroy Ukraine."
The Future of Ceasefires and Negotiations
Dmytro Lubinets pointed out that the Oleshky mission has shown that if Moscow is willing, it can establish a ceasefire across the front, but so far Russia has shown no willingness to do so. He also mentioned that new negotiations between Ukraine, the United States, and Russia are being prepared for November 10 and 11 in Abu Dhabi.
Chalenko, from the Center for Analysis and Strategy of Ukraine, believes that high expectations should not be held for future negotiations, as Russia is looking for an excuse to withdraw from the talks. He also emphasized that cooperation between the two human rights commissioners has reached a new level, and this case is one of the notable examples that includes prisoner exchanges and access for foreign representatives to Ukrainian political prisoners in Russia.
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