The evacuation of Oleshky residents was organized by the intelligence services of Ukraine and Russia, but the credit was given to Melania Trump

The mission to evacuate civilians from the occupied town of Oleshky in the Kherson region was, in fact, organized by Ukrainian and Russian military intelligence agencies. At the same time, the operation was publicly presented as the result of diplomatic mediation by U.S. First Lady Melania Trump.

According to the publication, Moscow had long refused to open a humanitarian corridor to Oleshky.

However, in the summer of 2026, the parties finally agreed to direct negotiations between the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ukrainian Ministry of Defense and the Main Directorate of the General Staff of the Russian Armed Forces.

After four months of consultations, the practical aspects of evacuating the civilian population were organized by the human rights commissioners of both countries—Dmytro Lubinets from Ukraine and Yana Lantratova from Russia.

Despite this, the operation was carried out under the auspices of the White House and presented as a personal achievement of Melania Trump. However, as the publication notes, the exact extent of Washington’s involvement remains unknown.

Experts and sources cited by Le Monde suggest that even if Melania Trump expressed concern for the fate of civilians, Kyiv and Moscow—having already agreed on the details between themselves—may have deliberately given diplomatic credit to Washington. This could have been a nod to Donald Trump, who always strives to act as the chief arbiter in global affairs. 

“Realizing that he would not receive the Nobel Peace Prize, Trump may have decided to try to win it for Melania,” the publication writes. 

The city of Oleshky has been under Russian occupation since 2022, and in recent months, a massive humanitarian crisis has escalated there.

As a result of agreements on a ceasefire and the opening of an evacuation corridor, about 700 people were evacuated from the city. 

This was reported by the French newspaper Le Monde, citing its own sources.
 

Melania Trump reacted to the successful evacuation of Oleshky residents.

Melania Trump announced the evacuation of nearly 800 people from Oleshky — Anadolu Agency.

Melania Trump may visit the occupied town of Oleshky.

Ukrainian Ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets reported on October 30 that all residents of Oleshky who wished to leave for territory controlled by Ukraine were able to take advantage of the evacuation, and humanitarian aid was delivered to those who remained.

Separately, the ombudsman noted that the ceasefire has been in effect for over 87 hours. The Ukrainian delegation is returning home.

As a reminder, 17 buses carrying residents of Oleshky are heading to Ukraine, while the number heading to Russia is several times smaller.