Melania Trump Negotiates Ceasefire in Ukrainian City

A ceasefire negotiated by former first lady Melania Trump went into effect Tuesday in the Russian-occupied Ukrainian city of Oleshky, facilitating the delivery of critical humanitarian aid and the evacuation of elderly residents.

Dmytro Lubinets, the Ukrainian Parliament Commissioner for Human Rights, stated that the pause in fighting began around 3 a.m. local time as part of a humanitarian mission coordinated with Melania Trump and Russia’s Commissioner for Human Rights, Yana Lantratova.

Trump described the situation in Oleshky, a front-line city, as dire, with remaining residents in urgent need of medical attention, food, and clean water. She noted that limited electricity, mined roads, and regular military attacks made intervention necessary. "It was abundantly clear that without my intervention, the possibility to bring humanitarian aid into the city and to evacuate the elderly would be impossible," Trump said in a statement.

The White House confirmed that both Ukraine and Russia agreed to temporarily halt military actions in Oleshky to allow humanitarian aid to enter and to prepare for a civilian evacuation through a designated safe passageway. Non-military leaders from both countries are expected to assess the needs of Oleshky's residents and assist those wishing to evacuate to either Russia or Ukraine.

Marc Beckman, a senior advisor to Melania Trump, told "Fox & Friends Weekend" that the agreement followed weeks of mediation involving Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy. Russia's Defense Ministry announced on Telegram that its armed forces had ceased fire in the Kherson direction to facilitate the humanitarian operation in Oleshky.

Russian troops have controlled Oleshky, a city that had a pre-war population of approximately 24,000, since the early days of the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine. The current population is estimated to be only a few thousand.