Oleshky Ceasefire Begins as Nordic Leaders Call Putin

A localized ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine took effect at 3 a.m. Tuesday in Oleshky, a city in the Kherson region. The pause in fighting is designed to allow a humanitarian aid mission into the Russian-occupied area, which has been brokered by U.S. First Lady Melania Trump. Ukrainian and Russian officials confirmed the start of the truce in separate statements.

The city holds up to 2,000 civilians who face critical shortages of food and medical supplies. Movement in Oleshky is restricted by drones and land mines. Negotiators stated that the mission will deliver doctors, medicines, food, and water before evacuation corridors open. The ceasefire is scheduled to last through Saturday or longer if necessary, though the exact geographical scope remains unclear beyond the Oleshky area.

In related diplomatic moves, Finnish President Alexander Stubb and Norwegian Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Støre held their first known direct phone call with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The conversation followed an Oct. 20 meeting in Oslo that included Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and U.S. special envoy Steve Witkoff. Stubb and Støre spoke on behalf of their individual nations rather than all of Europe. Stubb described the discussion with Putin as frank and substantive.

After speaking with the Kremlin, the Nordic leaders conferred with Zelenskyy. The calls aim to prepare for trilateral talks involving delegations from Russia, Ukraine, and the United States. Those talks are expected to occur next month in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, with the goal of laying groundwork for detailed peace negotiations later. The Kremlin stated that a just and long-term peace requires that Russia’s legitimate interests be fully taken into account.

Denmark’s Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen expressed skepticism about the direct outreach. She noted that the call was not coordinated with other European leaders and said she sees no signs that Russia desires peace with Europe. Frederiksen argued that Europe should remain united rather than acting alone. Zelenskyy emphasized that Russia must halt its relentless strikes on Ukraine’s power grid to open a path to peace.

Despite the local truce, Russia continued missile attacks on other parts of Ukraine. Minutes after the ceasefire began, ballistic missiles struck Kyiv and air alerts sounded across the country. City officials in Kyiv reported that missile strikes damaged a university campus, killing one person and wounding 12. In Kharkiv, attacks late Monday killed two people and wounded four others. Zelenskyy said Russia launched 16 ballistic missiles and more than 280 drones at 11 regions of Ukraine.

Yaroslav Shanko, head of the Kherson city administration, described the silence in Ukrainian-held Kherson as unusual but frightening. He noted that his portable drone detector had gone quiet, a rare occurrence in a city where people are wounded or killed nearly every day. City services plan to use the pause to perform utility work that is usually too dangerous due to constant drone activity. Oleshky sits across the Dnipro River from Kherson, a city Russian forces seized in early 2022 before retreating across the water several months later.