Aid mission set to enter Oleshky as a localized Russia-Ukraine truce holds for a third day

KHERSON, Ukraine (AP) — Humanitarian aid is poised to roll into the stricken city of Oleshky on Friday, a Ukrainian official said, as a localized ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine stretched into a third day and military units cleared away landmines.

Moscow and Kyiv have observed the truce in and around the devastated southern Ukrainian city since Tuesday, despite remaining locked in war since Russia’s all-out invasion of its neighbor more than 4 1/2 years ago. Previous efforts to secure ceasefires either never worked out or the truces quickly fell apart.

But elsewhere, a jet-powered Russian drone hit two passenger trains stopped at a station in Dnipro in central Ukraine, killing at least 14 people and injuring 10 others, officials said.

Also, a Russian cruise missile killed two 15-year-old girls in the northern city of Chernihiv, and two more civilians died when a Russian drone hit an apartment block in the central Ukraine city of Kremenchuk, authorities said.

Russia’s Defense Ministry, meanwhile, said air defenses downed 1,214 Ukrainian drones overnight in one of the largest drone attacks launched by Kyiv. Around half of the drones were heading to the Russian capital, Moscow Mayor Sergei Sobyanin said.

The planned six-day ceasefire around Russian-occupied Oleshky has brought a rare and welcome stillness for civilians in the nearby city of Kherson, which is held by Ukraine and has also been wracked by the war.

The Oleshky ceasefire has held for 54 hours, officials say

Both sides thanked U.S. first lady Melania Trump for what the White House said was her role in helping broker the temporary ceasefire so that food and medical supplies can reach some desperate 2,000 people trapped in Oleshky. Pope Leo XIV also pressed for a truce.

“The ceasefire has been in place for 54 hours now,” Ukrainian ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets said Thursday, adding that aid deliveries were due to begin the following day. “The parties are fully adhering to the agreements, and no violations of the ceasefire have been reported.”

His Russian counterpart, Yana Lantratova, confirmed the truce was holding and that Russian engineers are working on de-mining Oleshky roads.

“Both sides are fully honoring their commitments, and no violations have been recorded,” she said. “This allows military personnel to continue clearing roads of mines and to prepare a safe passage for the humanitarian convoy.”

Local people will also be able to evacuate, either into Russia or Ukraine, officials say. The mechanics of how that might work were unclear.

Lantratova said she and her team were on their way to Oleshky for the aid delivery, while Lubinets arrived in Belarus and will head to the city from there, as part of an operation that Lantratova said was five months in the making.

People in Kherson go outside as drone danger stops amid truce

In the city of Kherson, growing numbers of people were out on the streets as the truce held.

Nataliia Myronenko, 42, had a steady stream of customers at her coffee kiosk since early Thursday.

“Now, during the quiet, we have people at lunchtime and in the evening, which we didn’t have under the attacks,” she said. “For a while, people would race down this street because they were afraid to stop.”

The pause has brought a sense of relief, she said. “It’s a breath of freedom, when you don’t look at the sky. You keep looking at your feet because of the mines, but you’re not afraid of dying. It’s so great,” she said.

“It’s such a privilege and a joy, but we understand it will end soon.”

Russian leader Putin says Elon Musk is ‘a genius’

Moscow and Kyiv are keen to curry favor with Washington ahead of possible three-way talks next month between Russia, Ukraine and the United States.

American military support is vital for Ukraine, but U.S. President Donald Trump has recently indicated that he is disengaging with Kyiv as he waived sanctions on Russia and publicly chided Zelenskyy.

Tankers carrying Russian diesel are currently sailing to the United States, and Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov will travel to the U.S. for a G20 ministerial meeting in Atlanta, Georgia, starting Friday, according to Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova.

European leaders, on the other hand, have been trying to diplomatically isolate Russian President Vladimir Putin over Moscow’s invasion and what they call a campaign of sabotage across the continent.

Ukraine earlier this month reported sudden and unexpected limits on Starshield, the military-grade version of the Starlink satellite internet service owned by Elon Musk’s SpaceX that is the backbone of Ukraine’s drone operations and communications.

Putin said that Russia has been in contact with the American tech titan to coordinate their orbiting activities because it is building its own equivalent of Starlink.

“Elon Musk is a genius. Truly, a real genius,” Putin said late Wednesday.

“We and our American partners value this relationship, and despite all the political issues, we continue to work closely together,” he added.

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AP journalists Vasilisa Stepanenko in Kherson, Ukraine and Susie Blann and Derek Gatopoulos in Kyiv, Ukraine contributed to this report.

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Follow the AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine