Demining Begins on Oleshky Aid Routes as Truce Holds

Demining of routes into Russian-occupied Oleshky is underway, with both Russia and Ukraine observing a humanitarian ceasefire that took effect on Oct. 27, and has so far lasted for more than 30 hours without incident. Ukraine’s human rights commissioner Dmytro Lubinets described the move as a crucial stage of the mission, needed to safely deliver aid and allow for civilian evacuations to proceed. JOIN US ON TELEGRAMFollow our coverage of the war on the @Kyivpost_official. “Our shared goal is to provide assistance to people and give them the opportunity to reach safe territory,” Lubinets wrote in a statement on Telegram. Truce still holding The truce marks a rare instance of de-escalation in the war. Davyd Arakhamia, who leads President Volodymyr Zelensky’s Servant of the People party in parliament, described it as the largest since 2022. Its start, however, was initially clouded by confusion. On Oct. 23, the White House announced that Ukraine and Russia had agreed to temporarily halt military activity in Oleshky. The deal was brokered by US First Lady Melania Trump. Hours later, Chief of the Russian General Staff Valery Gerasimov announced a “silence regime” along the Kherson front beginning Oct. 27, two days earlier than the Oct. 29 date set by the White House. Neither Kyiv nor Washington immediately explained the discrepancy, and Moscow’s unilateral announcement widely raised concerns of possible sabotage, given Russia’s record of breaking previous ceasefires. Other Topics of Interest Netherlands Pledges €1.2B to Ukraine, Including €40M for Urgent Repairs by Year-End During his visit to Kyiv, Dutch Foreign Trade Minister Sjoerd Sjoerdsma said support for Ukraine’s reconstruction cannot wait for a ceasefire. Despite those fears, the truce took effect as Moscow had announced, at 3 a.m. Kyiv time, Oct. 27. It is set to last until 10:59 p.m. on Nov. 1. Ukrainian officials and European leaders have long been aware of the crisis in Oleshky and have worked for months to secure a safe evacuation and restore food supplies. Before the truce was officially announced, Pope Leo XIV held a telephone discussion with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Oct. 16, urging him to agree to an immediate ceasefire and allow the delivery of food and medical assistance to the city. The pontiff then spoke to Zelensky on Monday, Oct. 19, reiterating his earlier request for a humanitarian ceasefire. On Oct. 20, European Parliament Vice President Pina Picierno declared a hunger strike in protest over the starvation of civilians in Oleshky. A humanitarian catastrophe Oleshky, located on the left bank of the Dnipro River in Ukraine’s southern Kherson region, roughly 5 kilometers (3 miles) southeast of Kherson city, has faced severe shortages of food, clean water and medicine for months, with the last food delivery reported on May 26. Residents also cannot access their bank accounts nor withdraw cash as that would require leaving the town – which is nearly impossible. According to Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha’s estimates, roughly 1,700 people remain in the city from a prewar population of 24,000, including 47 children. Lubinets, however, earlier said that about 6,000 people, including some 200 children, remain across Oleshky and the surrounding settlements. In his view, up to 2,000 people could remain in Oleshky itself. However, neither figure could be independently verified, particularly because Russian occupation authorities narrowly restrict access to information from the area. “Families are starving, surviving on leftover garden vegetables, canned goods, and even snails. Residents say that Russian soldiers have threatened them at gunpoint to seize their food,” Sybiha said. In a statement on Sept. 16, Lubinets said that the residents had started escaping on foot independently across mined fields and under threat of constant Russian drone attacks, simply because they saw no other way out. Several Ukrainian authorities called the city a “death trap.” Kyiv Post is Ukraine’s first and oldest English news organization, reporting since 1995. Its international reach – 90% of readers are outside of Ukraine – make it truly Ukraine’s global voice.