Rare joint announcement made by Russia and Ukraine

Rare joint announcement by Russia and Ukraine Moscow and Kyiv announced Thursday that demining operations around the town of Oleshky, located in southern Ukraine under the control of Russian forces and affected by the conflict, have been completed, and an operation intended to bring aid into the town and allow residents to leave is ready to begin. "Demining operations for the routes have been completed for the humanitarian mission in Oleshky," the two parties stated in practically identical communiqués issued by Yana Lantratova, the Russian Human Rights Commissioner, and her Ukrainian counterpart, Dmytro Lubinets, according to Reuters. "The humanitarian convoy is ready for departure," the communiqués from both parties further state. According to the statements, the convoy will head toward the district hospital, and residents wishing to leave will be permitted to do so within a specified timeframe, "with all safety measures ensured." Subsequently, humanitarian aid packages will be distributed, the two communiqués mentioned. Russia and Ukraine have agreed on a localized ceasefire around the town of Oleshky, an agreement that will allow the delivery of aid and the evacuation of this frontline town, which is facing an acute shortage of food and medicine. The agreement was announced on October 23 and was negotiated by the First Lady of the USA, Melania Trump, with the additional involvement of Pope Leo. Melania Trump's role, highlighted by Putin himself On Thursday, Russian President Vladimir Putin himself highlighted the role of Melania Trump in organizing the humanitarian mission in the town of Oleshky, in the annexed Ukrainian region of Kherson. "Regarding the Russian-Ukrainian conflict zone, an (humanitarian) operation has been planned for these days, today or tomorrow, with the support of the First Lady of the United States, specifically to provide assistance to the civilian population," the Kremlin leader stated during a speech at the third Russia-Africa summit held in Moscow, according to the news agencies EFE and Agerpres. This was the first time the Russian leader commented on the temporary ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine established in the Oleshky area for the purpose of aiding and evacuating the residents of the town, which has been blocked for months due to fighting in the area. The Russian President claimed that the situation in Oleshky worsened due to Ukraine's actions, which mined access to the town and caused "a humanitarian catastrophe." For its part, Kyiv accused Russian soldiers of acting similarly. "We are working on this (the demining of the town), just as we are working toward a possible peaceful solution to the Ukrainian crisis," Vladimir Putin assured. According to reports on Thursday from the Russian Ministry of Defense, soldiers were demining the road to the town of Oleshky, where the ceasefire was established on Tuesday. "The density of mines is high, but we continue to advance," the Russian military leadership emphasized on its Telegram account, where it also posted a video of the demining activities. According to the Ministry of Defense, engineers from the Dnipro military group were conducting "reconnaissance and clearing of the highways to ensure the safety of the transit routes toward the town of Oleshky." "The ceasefire regime has been respected for 54 hours now, starting from 04:00 Moscow time on October 27. The parties are fully respecting their assumed commitments; no violations have been detected," Yana Lantratova stated earlier on Thursday on her account on MAX, the Russian messaging network. The ceasefire between Russia and Ukraine for the evacuation of residents from Oleshky and the delivery of supplies to those remaining in their homes will be valid until Sunday evening.