Oleshky ceasefire expires after Russia declines extension

Ceasefire ends without extension

The ceasefire in and around Oleshky ended on Sunday, 1 November, Ukrainian Human Rights Commissioner Dmytro Lubinets said. "The ceasefire, which was in effect from October 27 to November 1, has ended," he said on Telegram, according to DW. DW reported it was the longest local pause in fighting since Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022.

A Ukrainian official told AFP that Russia refused an extension after Ukraine's Foreign Ministry proposed one. Russia has not been quoted responding to that claim. There was no immediate indication of renewed hostilities in the area, India Today reported.

Reports gave slightly different expiry times. Al Jazeera said the truce expired at 10:59 p.m. Kyiv time (20:59 GMT). StratNews Global and Kiprinform said midnight Moscow time (21:00 GMT). DW said 11 p.m. local time (10 p.m. CET). India Today described the truce as lasting six days, from 27 October to 1 November.

Evacuation figures differ

Melania Trump, who helped broker the truce, said on social media that nearly 800 people were evacuated from Oleshky. Ukraine's General Staff separately said its units and local authorities moved 167 civilians to safer points in the Kherson region on the final day, including 22 children and 21 people with limited mobility.

The figures measure different things: Melania's number covers the Oleshky evacuation, while the 167 were moved from threatened parts of the Kherson region on Sunday, according to India Today. About 2,000 civilians were in Oleshky when the truce took effect, the AP reported. Residents could leave for Ukrainian-controlled territory, leave for Russian-held territory, or stay with restocked food and medical supplies. The AP said the joint evacuation operation ended on Saturday and exact numbers were not released after the evacuation to protect those who remained.

Routes varied. DW reported that evacuees who reached Ukrainian territory travelled by bus through Russia and Belarus. India Today reported that buses from Oleshky headed toward Crimea, with separate groups then travelling toward Russia or Ukraine.

Both sides claim compliance

Lubinets said both sides had "upheld the obligations they undertook throughout the duration of this period." Al Jazeera reported that neither side accused the other of violations. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said Moscow viewed the operation positively and praised coordination between the two countries' human rights commissioners.

Lubinets said he and Russia's Commissioner for Human Rights, Yana Lantratova, were exploring ways to continue similar humanitarian operations. "It is important to maintain this interaction mechanism so that we can keep helping people and saving lives," he said, according to India Today.

Kherson regional governor Oleksandr Prokudin urged residents to avoid the "red zones" near the Dnipro River, where he said the intensity of Russian strikes remains high.

White House meeting and next steps

The White House said on Tuesday that Melania Trump will host representatives of Russia and Ukraine at the White House on Thursday, 5 November 2026, and deliver remarks at 11 a.m. ET. It called the event "an extraordinary moment in American history" and described her decision to bring the two sides together as an unprecedented diplomatic initiative by an American first lady. The statement said she had independently opened channels between the countries and secured the ceasefire.

Pope Leo XIV, who had pressed Russia to agree to the truce, said he hoped the pause would "strengthen the desire for dialogue and lead to new concrete peace initiatives."

BGNES reported that US-mediated negotiations between Moscow and Kyiv are expected to resume in November, and that talks had been frozen since February, when the United States and Israel launched joint strikes against Iran.