Six-Day Truce in Occupied Oleshky Holds Into Third Day as Russian Strikes Kill Dozens
Both sides credit Melania Trump with helping broker a pause so aid can reach about 2,000 trapped residents, even as strikes elsewhere in Ukraine killed at least 14 at a Dnipro station.
A local ceasefire around the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky in southern Ukraine entered its third day on Thursday, a rare pause in a war where earlier truces have failed or collapsed quickly.
The planned six-day truce has been observed since Tuesday. Both Russia and Ukraine credit U.S. first lady Melania Trump with helping broker it, and the White House says she helped arrange it so aid could reach about 2,000 people trapped in the city. Ukraine's ombudsman, Dmytro Lubinets, said: "The parties are fully adhering to the agreements, and no violations of the ceasefire have been reported."
Military units are clearing landmines, and Russian engineers are demining roads. Aid was expected to start moving on Friday. Russian official Yana Lantratova said the operation took five months to prepare and that she was traveling to Oleshky. Russian and Ukrainian representatives met in Homel, Belarus, to travel together to the Kherson region. Pope Leo XIV also pressed for a truce.
Residents can evacuate into either Russia or Ukraine, but how that would work is unclear. Ksenia Arkhipova, a volunteer from Oleshky, said about 1,000 residents want to leave. Many fear Russian authorities will target people with pro-Ukrainian views or ties to Ukraine's military, which she said is why a Ukrainian delegation's presence matters. In nearby Kherson, a Ukrainian-held city, more people were out on the streets. Nataliia Myronenko, 42, who owns a coffee kiosk, said the calm brought relief: "It's a breath of freedom, when you don't look at the sky."
Away from Oleshky, the fighting continued. On Thursday a jet-powered Russian drone hit two passenger trains stopped at a station in Dnipro, killing at least 14 people and injuring 14 more. One injured man, 40, had both legs amputated. A Russian cruise missile killed two 15-year-old girls in Chernihiv, and a Russian drone hit an apartment block in Kremenchuk, killing three civilians. In total, 56 people were injured, including 10 children.
Russia's Defense Ministry said its air defenses downed 1,214 Ukrainian drones overnight. Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said about half were headed for Moscow.
The war began with Russia's full-scale invasion more than four and a half years ago. Moscow and Kyiv are now both courting Washington ahead of possible three-way talks next month. President Trump has waived sanctions on Russia and publicly criticized Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, and tankers carrying Russian diesel are heading to the United States. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is expected at a G20 ministerial meeting in Atlanta that starts Friday, according to Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova.
Ukraine also recently reported sudden limits on Starshield, the military version of SpaceX's Starlink, which supports its drone operations. Russian President Vladimir Putin said Russia is coordinating orbital activities with Elon Musk, calling him "a genius."
If the Oleshky truce holds through its sixth day and aid gets in, it will be a small proof that the two sides can still cooperate on narrow humanitarian goals, even as the broader war grinds on.
