Ukrainian Delegation Heads Toward Oleshky for Aid Mission

A Ukrainian delegation led by Human Rights Commissioner Dmytro Lubinets set off toward Russian-occupied Oleshky on Thursday, Oct. 29, as preparations continued for humanitarian aid deliveries and civilian evacuations.

David Arakhamia, head of the Servant of the People parliamentary faction, announced the departure in a Telegram post.

“We will monitor and report on the progress of the operation as soon as communications become available,” he wrote.

The delegation is heading toward the occupied city in the Kherson region under a humanitarian arrangement intended to bring supplies to residents and establish safe passage for those wishing to leave.

Mine clearance precedes aid deliveries

The departure follows confirmation that teams had begun clearing mines from access routes.

In an Wednesday, Oct. 28 update, Lubinets described demining as an essential stage before humanitarian cargo could be delivered safely and civilians could leave the city.

He said preparations were continuing with Russian negotiating representative Yana Lantratova and through mediation and coordination by US First Lady Melania Trump.

The operation is being implemented in stages: maintaining the ceasefire, preparing access routes, delivering assistance, and enabling voluntary departures.

Lubinets said the purpose was to help residents reach safe territory, placing civilian lives and security at the center of the preparations.

Ceasefire scheduled to last until Nov. 1

The localized ceasefire began at 3 a.m. Kyiv time on Tuesday, Oct. 27 and is scheduled to remain in force until 10:59 p.m. on Nov. 1.

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On Wednesday morning, Lubinets said its first 30 hours passed without incidents, crediting continued communication between the negotiating teams.

Ukraine’s Marine Corps also reported Russian compliance during the pause’s opening hours and said Ukrainian personnel were monitoring developments.

The respite extended to Ukrainian-controlled Kherson, across the Dnipro River. Regional authorities reported no new shelling or strikes on civilian and critical infrastructure during the preceding day.

Emergency responders and municipal workers used the quieter conditions to reach areas that had previously been difficult to access, including neighborhoods closer to the river.

Residents face shortages and mined roads

Oleshky has remained under Russian occupation since the opening stages of the full-scale invasion in 2022.

The White House estimates that 1,700-2,000 people remain in the city, including approximately 50 children, compared with a prewar population of roughly 24,000.

Its remaining residents, many of them elderly, face shortages of food, drinking water and medicine, limited electricity, and heavily mined roads.

The White House’s Oct. 23 announcement said civilian representatives from Ukraine and Russia would visit residents at home, assess their needs, and arrange support for those choosing to evacuate.

It also said an American media organization would accompany the teams to document the process and residents’ preferences.

President Volodymyr Zelensky has warned that Russia could manipulate demining arrangements to direct evacuees toward Russian-controlled territory, raising concerns about whether residents would genuinely be able to choose their destination.

Humanitarian efforts could continue beyond the mission

Before the ceasefire, Ukrainian forces used drones to deliver supplies into Oleshky.

On Sunday, Oct. 25, Interior Minister Ivan Vyhivsky announced that National Guard operators had delivered more than 600 kilograms (1,320 pounds) of aid in 15 containers.

The cargo included infant formula, cereals, dried food, toys, and developmental games for children.

The current mission seeks to establish access for larger deliveries and civilian departures beyond those individual drone operations.

Fox News subsequently reported that Ukraine and Russia had agreed to conduct regular humanitarian operations in Kherson region communities after the Oleshky mission ends.

According to that report, aid deliveries and repatriation efforts would take place as needed, but at least once a month, with Melania Trump’s assistance and coordination.