Russia and Ukraine announce ceasefire in Oleshky; negotiations planned in Abu Dhabi

Russia and Ukraine agreed to a ceasefire in the Russian-occupied Ukrainian city of Oleshky, both sides announced on Friday. The ceasefire takes effect on October 27 and includes delivery of humanitarian aid and evacuation of residents through humanitarian corridors.

U.S. First Lady Melania Trump served as mediator in reaching the agreement. According to her, residents who wish to evacuate will receive coordinated support and transportation to their chosen destination, and she expects that "some of them will want to leave for Russia, and some for Ukraine." She also noted that her involvement allowed both sides to form working groups to agree on technical conditions of the process, including demining heavily mined roads. "All sides have been working around the clock since then," she added.

The White House confirmed that both countries agreed to "temporarily cease all military operations in Oleshky" to ensure humanitarian aid access and prepare civilian evacuation through a designated safe corridor.

General Valery Gerasimov, chief of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces, announced via the Defense Ministry's Telegram channel that Russian troops will cease fire starting at 4:00 a.m. local time on October 27 to enable the beginning of the humanitarian operation. Ukraine's General Staff issued a statement in which it also committed to observing the ceasefire from the same time and to do "everything possible to assist residents of Oleshky." Ukraine reported that it has already used drones twice to deliver food to the city.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky stated that as part of efforts to end the more than two-year war, negotiators from Ukraine, Russia, and the United States agreed to technical-level meetings in the first half of November in Abu Dhabi. An American official clarified that talks could also take place in Switzerland. Zelensky expressed hope for a subsequent meeting of the leaders of the three countries.

Previous rounds of U.S.-led negotiations stalled in February without significant progress toward ending Europe's bloodiest conflict since World War II. Russia continues to demand that Ukraine cede the entire eastern Donbas region, including territories that Moscow does not control militarily; Kyiv rejects any transfer of lands it currently holds.

The latest peace efforts followed a deterioration in relations between Washington and Kyiv in recent weeks and a series of steps by U.S. President Donald Trump, viewed as showing favoritism toward Russia. One major source of tension has been restrictions imposed on Starlink, the satellite communications system operated by SpaceX, which Ukraine uses for defense against strikes. Trump said on Friday that if Ukraine continues to have problems with the system, he will resolve them and, if necessary, discuss the matter with SpaceX CEO Elon Musk.

Another contentious issue has been Trump's announcement of a deal allowing Russia to supply diesel fuel to American and global markets—an agreement condemned by Ukraine and intended to keep prices low ahead of midterm elections involving Republicans. Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak stated on Friday that the first three tankers carrying Russian diesel fuel are heading toward North America.