A small city in southern Ukraine, cut off for months by fighting, is set to get a brief pause in the 4 1/2-year-old war so that aid can get in and residents can get out.
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residents → cut → war
U.S. first lady Melania Trump brokered the localized ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine around Oleshky, a Russian-occupied city she said is “on the brink of disaster.”
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she → broker → disaster
Ukrainian, Russian and U.S. negotiators reached the deal Friday.
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negotiators → reach → deal
Officials on all sides have confirmed it, but many details have not been released.
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details → confirm → it
Oleshky has been without power, heat or water
Oleshky is located in Ukraine’s partially occupied Kherson region.
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Oleshky → locate → region
It sits on the Dnipro River, which separates Ukrainian forces from the city’s Russian occupiers.
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which → sit → occupiers
Moscow’s forces captured it on the first day of the full-scale invasion in February 2022.
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forces → capture → February
Its buildings were shelled and burned.
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buildings → shell → ?
In June 2023, floodwaters swamped the city after the Kakhovka Dam collapsed in an explosion that an Associated Press investigation found was likely caused by the Russian military.
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investigation → swamp → military
Hundreds of residents were killed.
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Hundreds → kill → residents
Once home to about 24,000 people, the city has had scarce food and medical supplies for months.
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city → have → months
Roads out of town are mined and lined with burned-out cars, and drones buzz overhead.
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drones → mine → cars
With another harsh winter approaching, those still there face death from hunger or disease.
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those → approach → hunger
Ukraine has repeatedly appealed for a local ceasefire to organize evacuations.
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Ukraine → appeal → evacuations
As the occupying power, Russia is obligated under international law to make sure civilians under its control have what they need to survive.
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they → occupy → what
Ceasefire, aid, then evacuations
The deal sets out three stages: a ceasefire, then delivery of humanitarian aid, then evacuation of civilians who want to leave Oleshky, according to Dmytro Lubinets, Ukraine’s human rights ombudsman and its chief negotiator in the talks.
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who → set → talks
Before any aid moves, mines will be cleared on the routes into the city, Lubinets said.
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Lubinets → clear → city
Russia’s human rights ombudswoman, Yana Lantratova, who took part in the negotiations, said firstly they plan to establish what residents need and then deliver food, medicine, hygiene products and other essentials.
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residents → take → food
She said anyone who wants to leave the combat zone will be guaranteed safe passage.
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who → say → passage
The pause begins Tuesday and will last several days
Lubinets told the AP that the ceasefire will begin Tuesday, two days before the humanitarian mission starts, and will last several days.
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mission → begin → AP
Russia’s chief of the general staff, Gen. Valery Gerasimov, said Russian forces “will cease fire on the Kherson axis” from 4 a.m. Tuesday Moscow time, which is late Monday in the United States.
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which → say → States
He said Russian forces would also carry out “engineering reconnaissance” and ensure the “humanitarian convoy” can move safely into the city.
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convoy → say → city
Ukraine’s General Staff said the ceasefire will begin at 3 a.m. Tuesday Kyiv time, since Ukraine moves its clocks back an hour on Sunday while Russia does not.
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Russia → say → Sunday
Lubinets said the pause would apply across the Kherson region and neighboring areas essential to the operation.
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pause → say → operation
Key details have not been released
Lubinets gave no details on how the ceasefire or the aid mission would be monitored or carried out, citing the sensitivity of the negotiations.
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ceasefire → release → negotiations
He declined to say whether Melania Trump would travel to Ukraine.
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Trump → decline → Ukraine
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said people who want to leave Oleshky will be able to.
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who → say → Oleshky
He would not say whether they would be taken to Russian- or Ukrainian-held territory.
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they → say → territory
Asked how long the evacuation would last, he said only that it would most likely take several days.
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it → ask → days
“The operation will be carried out gradually and is extremely challenging to implement,” Lubinets said.
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Lubinets → carry → ?
The first lady took up the issue at the UN
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lady → take → UN
The first lady began talks on Oleshky after she heard about the situation at one of her events during the U.N. General Assembly session in September, the White House said.
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House → begin → September
She and a representative then worked directly with Russian and Ukrainian leadership to set the terms.
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She → work → terms
She had already been working with officials from both countries on a separate matter.
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She → work → matter
“When Melania Trump learned about the situation in Oleshky, the negotiation process began under her coordination,” Lubinets said.
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Lubinets → learn → coordination
He said the sides spent several weeks discussing ideas and developing “new approaches, mechanisms and tools” to help civilians there survive.
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civilians → say → approaches
Helping children in conflict zones has become one of her signature issues during her husband’s second term.
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Helping → help → term
She hosted a U.N. Security Council meeting on the issue earlier this year.
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She → host → issue
Last year she wrote to Russian President Vladimir Putin about efforts to reunite families with children she described as “displaced by the war.”
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she → write → war
Her senior adviser, Marc Beckman, says she has helped reunite nearly three dozen children.
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she → say → children
…and 9 more, not listed.
The Aporia
