First Lady Melania Trump brought Russian and Ukrainian officials to the White House on Thursday to mark a localized ceasefire she helped broker in Oleshky, and President Trump said afterward that a broader settlement of the Russia-Ukraine war may be close.
The White House said the gathering is believed to be the first time an American first lady has brought representatives of two nations at war together to the White House for diplomacy. Guests included Kirill Dmitriev, special envoy to Russian President Vladimir Putin; Yana Lantratova, Russia’s human-rights commissioner; David Arakhamia of Ukraine’s Servant of the People party; and Dmytro Lubinets, Ukraine’s parliament commissioner for human rights.
The Oleshky ceasefire
The ceasefire in Russian-controlled Oleshky and surrounding parts of Kherson ran from Oct. 27 through Nov. 1. Mrs. Trump said her role as “Exclusive Intermediary” was set out in written agreements signed by both sides on Oct. 23. She said she reviewed demining plans, aerial images, roadways, evacuation routes, hospitals, vehicles, and medical resources.
“We have chosen humanity over war,” she said in remarks released by the White House. “Together, we can create something more enduring than a temporary ceasefire.” She said nearly 800 people were evacuated and that food, clean water, and medicine entered the area. Ukrainian representatives presented her with the Order of Princess Olga, First Class. She also handed the highest-ranking guests personal letters to Putin and Zelensky.
Trump after meeting Dmitriev
Trump met privately with Dmitriev after the first lady’s event. He did not meet with the Ukrainian delegation, The Epoch Times reported. “I think we’re going to be very close to settling Russia-Ukraine,” he told reporters in the Oval Office.
Rapid Response 47 posted a clip of the President saying, “There’s going to be an agreement. It’s going to be a big agreement, and it’s going to involve more than Ukraine… I could even say it might involve all of Europe. It’s going to be a big, beautiful agreement — and everybody is going to be thrilled.”
The Epoch Times reported that the United States is expected to mediate trilateral talks with Russia and Ukraine on Nov. 10 and 11 in Abu Dhabi, the first such talks since Geneva in February. Special envoy Jared Kushner said Thursday that U.S. negotiators had held productive talks in Brussels on Ukrainian security guarantees and a broader European architecture.
What Oleshky shows
Mrs. Trump credited both presidents. “The ceasefire in Oleshky would not be possible without President Putin and President Zelensky,” she said. A short pause that moved civilians and aid is not a final peace. It is evidence that both sides can still follow written rules when an intermediary they trust forces the issue. Critics will note that Trump met the Russian envoy and skipped the Ukrainian guests; the White House frames those tracks as separate.
The bottom line
I will take a ceasefire that gets people out of a war zone over another round of empty speeches. Melania Trump’s Oleshky work, as the White House described it, was detailed, written down, and aimed at civilians. That is diplomacy Americans can respect.
Trump is right to push for a larger agreement while he still has leverage and before Democrats take Congress in January. A deal that reaches into Europe’s security arrangements will be hard. It is still preferable to an endless war that drains American treasure.
We should judge the Abu Dhabi talks by results. If Putin and Zelensky can pause guns for a week in one city, they should be able to end this war on terms that protect American interests.