Oleshky Truce to Begin Tuesday to Deliver Aid and Evacuate Civilians from Kherson

Key Facts

Ukrainian, Russian and **American** negotiators agreed to a humanitarian truce in the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky, in Ukraine's southern Kherson region, the Associated Press reported on 23 October 2026. The understanding aims to deliver relief to the city and allow civilians to be evacuated, according to details of the operation reported by the agency. Ukraine's chief negotiator said the ceasefire would begin on Tuesday, two days before the humanitarian mission starts, and last several days. The truce includes Kherson and neighboring areas needed to carry out the operation, according to Ukrainian negotiator Dmytro Lubinets. The local arrangement comes as the resumption of trilateral talks between Russia, Ukraine and the United States is under discussion, but sources place the two tracks in separate contexts.

The mission will begin with clearing mines from the road to Oleshky, followed by the delivery of food, medicine, hygiene products and other essentials, the Associated Press reported. The arrangement also includes a safe corridor for civilians wishing to leave the combat zone. Lubinets said the ceasefire extends to neighboring areas needed for the operation, allowing its stages to be carried out beyond the city limits. The aid is significant amid shortages of food and medical supplies for months, according to an earlier agency report published on 17 October. That report cited the United Nations human rights office as saying the last regular food shipment reached the city via the road on 26 May 2026. The Associated Press said the number of residents remaining in the city had fallen to fewer than 2,000.

Oleshky, which had a population of about 24,000 before the war, fell to Russian forces on the first day of the full-scale invasion in February 2022, according to the Associated Press. Since September 2026, Ukraine's Marine Corps brigade has delivered more than 7 tons of food aid to the city by drone, the agency reported, citing the brigade's commander. Food shortages persisted despite those shipments, according to the same report. The city was also flooded in June 2023 after the collapse of the Kakhovka Dam, killing hundreds of residents, the Associated Press reported. Before the agreement, Pope Leo XIV urged Russian President Vladimir Putin in a phone call to agree to a humanitarian pause allowing food and medical aid to enter and civilians to be evacuated voluntarily and safely. He then urged Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to cooperate with Russia on aid and evacuation, the agency reported, citing the Vatican.

The White House said Melania Trump initiated talks on Oleshky and worked with a representative and officials from Russia and Ukraine to set the terms of the truce. The White House said she "worked directly with the Russian and Ukrainian leadership to determine the terms of the ceasefire." Her role frames the understanding as a humanitarian effort concerning the city, without linking it to broader settlement negotiations. On an exchange, Zelenskyy said Ukraine brought back 270 people from Russian captivity on Friday, 23 October. The exchange is separate from the Oleshky agreement, but took place on the same day the Ukrainian president discussed arrangements for the expected trilateral meeting.

Zelenskyy said a trilateral meeting at the team level between Ukraine, the United States and Russia is planned for the first half of November 2026, and that its timing depends on Russia. A trilateral meeting had been expected in October but did not take place; Zelenskyy said Russia gave a new reason for not meeting. According to Putin's foreign policy adviser, the Russian president agreed in principle to resume talks after 10 November. The adviser said the agenda would focus on building a security system for Russia and Ukraine after the conflict ends. In an earlier diplomatic context, Zelenskyy and U.S. President Donald Trump discussed steps to de-escalate that could open the way for diplomacy, with the aim of ending the war before winter, on the sidelines of the 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly in September 2026. November's talks remain a separate track, while the announced truce focuses on aid to Oleshky and the evacuation of civilians.