The temporary suspension of hostilities began at 3 a.m. local time following negotiations facilitated by U.S. First Lady Melania Trump, whose office said she had worked with civilian representatives from both countries to secure access to the besieged community.
The agreement is intended to allow desperately needed humanitarian assistance to reach as many as 2,000 civilians stranded in Oleshky, a town in southern Ukraine’s partially occupied Kherson region.
According to the United Nations, residents have been struggling with dwindling supplies of food and medicine, while explosive mines and persistent drone attacks have made evacuation extremely dangerous.
Melania Trump’s office said the first lady initiated discussions with Russian and Ukrainian civilian negotiators after receiving a briefing from United Nations officials about the deteriorating humanitarian situation in Oleshky.
The negotiations resulted in a temporary ceasefire designed to facilitate the delivery of emergency supplies and prepare safe evacuation routes for trapped civilians.
Russian and Ukrainian negotiators, along with the militaries of both countries, confirmed in separate statements that the agreement had taken effect.
The ceasefire is expected to remain in place through Saturday, with the possibility of an extension depending on developments on the ground.
However, deep mistrust between Moscow and Kyiv has repeatedly undermined previous attempts to establish lasting pauses in fighting.
The humanitarian initiative comes ahead of another round of U.S.-brokered peace negotiations expected next month, as diplomatic efforts continue to end the war after more than four and a half years of conflict.
Despite the temporary agreement covering Oleshky, Russian missile attacks continued elsewhere in Ukraine.
Just minutes after the ceasefire began at 3 a.m., multiple ballistic missile explosions rocked Kyiv, triggering air raid alerts across several parts of the country.
The renewed attacks followed another wave of strikes late Monday that caused casualties and damaged civilian infrastructure.
According to Kyiv city officials, Russian ballistic missiles struck the grounds of a university in the capital, killing one person and injuring 10 others.
In Kharkiv, Ukraine’s second-largest city, local authorities reported that attacks late Monday killed two people and wounded four.
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy condemned the continuing strikes, accusing Moscow of demonstrating little interest in ending the conflict.
“It is important that the world sees that Russia is showing nothing but a desire to kill and continue waging war,” Zelenskyy wrote in an online statement.
The attacks underscored the limited geographical scope of the ceasefire, which applies specifically to the humanitarian operation in Oleshky rather than the broader conflict.
Oleshky is located approximately 550 kilometers, or 340 miles, southeast of Kyiv, on the Russian-controlled side of the Dnipro River.
The river forms a major dividing line between Russian and Ukrainian forces in the Kherson region.
Russian troops captured Oleshky on the first day of Moscow’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.
The town subsequently suffered another devastating blow in June 2023, when the collapse of a major dam caused extensive flooding across surrounding communities.
Oleshky lies across the Dnipro River from Kherson, the regional administrative capital.
Russian forces initially occupied Kherson during the early months of the invasion but withdrew to positions across the river later in 2022.
Since then, the area has remained heavily militarized, with drone attacks, artillery fire and explosive hazards creating serious risks for civilians.
According to the United Nations, as many as 2,000 people remain trapped in Oleshky, unable to leave safely and increasingly vulnerable to shortages of essential supplies.
Negotiators involved in the humanitarian mission said the first phase of the operation would focus on delivering doctors, medical supplies, food and drinking water to residents.
Once assistance reaches the town, efforts are expected to shift toward establishing evacuation corridors for civilians wishing to leave.
The operation will depend on both sides maintaining the temporary ceasefire and ensuring safe passage for humanitarian personnel.
The agreement represents a limited diplomatic breakthrough in a conflict where previous ceasefire initiatives have frequently collapsed amid continued hostilities.
However, the simultaneous missile strikes on Kyiv and Kharkiv highlight the continuing challenges facing broader peace negotiations.
With the localized truce scheduled to remain in effect through Saturday, attention will now focus on whether humanitarian teams can safely enter Oleshky, deliver essential supplies and begin evacuating civilians.
The outcome could also influence confidence-building efforts ahead of the next round of U.S.-brokered negotiations between Moscow and Kyiv.
