Melania Trump Hosts Russian and Ukrainian Envoys at White House After Oleshky Ceasefire
US First Lady Melania Trump hosted Russian envoy Kirill Dmitriev and Ukrainian officials Dmytro Lubinets and Davyd Arakhamia at the White House, the first such in-person meeting of Russian and Ukrainian representatives there. Both sides credited her with brokering a six-day ceasefire in the Kherson region that allowed several hundred residents of Russian-occupied Oleshky to evacuate. She handed over letters to Putin and Zelensky and called for a lasting truce. Zelensky awarded her the Order of Princess Olga, and trilateral talks are planned in Abu Dhabi.
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Melania Trump Hosts Putin Envoy Dmitriev at White House, Hands Over Letters to Putin and Zelensky
Melania Trump hosted Kremlin envoy Kirill Dmitriev at the White House, marking the first time a Kremlin representative spoke publicly at such an event since the war began. Dmitriev thanked the First Lady on behalf of Vladimir Putin for her humanitarian role in brokering a ceasefire in the Russian-occupied frontline city of Oleshky. Ukrainian representatives David Arachamia and Dmytro Lubinets also attended and thanked her. Melania Trump announced she had written letters to Putin and Zelensky and asked both sides to deliver them, expressing hope that Oleshky would inspire greater peace. The six-day ceasefire in Oleshky expired Sunday. Zelensky awarded Melania Trump a national order for her mediation efforts. Trilateral talks between Ukraine, Russia, and the US are planned next week in Abu Dhabi.
Read sourceKremlin envoy speaks at White House as Melania Trump touts ceasefire diplomacy
Kremlin envoy Kirill Dmitriyev publicly spoke at the White House at the invitation of First Lady Melania Trump, thanking her for her humanitarian role in brokering a ceasefire in the Russian-occupied front-line town of Oleshky. Ukrainian representatives David Arachamiya and Dmytro Lubinets also attended, marking what US media described as the first in-person meeting of Russian and Ukrainian officials at the White House. Melania Trump presented letters addressed to Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelensky, calling the six-day Oleshky truce a model for a lasting ceasefire and saying she hopes it inspires greater peace. President Donald Trump said he met Dmitriyev but declined to disclose details, predicting a "very big, beautiful deal" with Russia that could extend beyond Ukraine to possibly all of Europe. Trilateral US-Russia-Ukraine talks are planned next week in Abu Dhabi.
Read sourceMelania Trump hosts Russian and Ukrainian officials, calls for lasting Ukraine truce
US First Lady Melania Trump called for a "more enduring" ceasefire in Ukraine while hosting Russian and Ukrainian delegations at the White House, following a six-day truce in the southern Kherson region that allowed hundreds of residents of the Russian-occupied town of Oleshky to evacuate. Both Moscow and Kyiv credited Trump with brokering the ceasefire. The delegations included Ukraine's human rights ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets, his Russian counterpart Yana Lantratova, Ukrainian MP Davyd Arakhamia, and Kremlin envoy Kirill Dmitriev. Trump said she reviewed demining plans, aerial images, evacuation routes, and medical resources during the truce, and thanked Volodymyr Zelensky and Vladimir Putin without referencing the war's origins. She handed the envoys personal letters for their presidents. A Kherson local government source told the BBC that groundwork for the evacuation had been ongoing for nearly a year, with others later taking credit. Zelensky said the ceasefire proved that "when Putin wants the fighting to stop, it stops," while analysts noted Russia's position remains unchanged and attacks continued elsewhere in Ukraine.
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Speculation Swirls Around Melania Trump as a Part-Time First Lady
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky awarded Melania Trump the Order of Princess Olga, first class, thanking her for negotiating a ceasefire and partial evacuation of the besieged frontline town of Oleshky. According to AP, Trump spent weeks negotiating with Russian and Ukrainian intermediaries to deliver water, food, medicine and fuel to residents and to allow those who wished to leave; about 800 people were evacuated on Saturday. The article notes she is the first presidential spouse to negotiate a ceasefire and previously chaired a UN Security Council session. It also discusses her reduced public appearances during Trump's second term, media characterizations of her ranging from 'Slovenian Sphinx' to 'political actor,' and her low approval ratings, while noting her initiatives on foster children, women's health and children's AI protection.
Zelensky awards Melania Trump Ukraine's highest women's honor after Oleshky ceasefire
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky awarded the Order of Princess Olga, 1st Class, to US First Lady Melania Trump for her "significant personal contribution to humanitarian support for Ukraine," according to a presidential decree. The award follows a ceasefire in Ukraine's southern Kherson region that enabled the evacuation of several hundred people from the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky. Russian and Ukrainian delegations, including ombudsmen Dmytro Lubinets and Yana Lantratova, Ukrainian MP Davyd Arakhamia, and Russian official Kirill Dmitriev, are due to meet at the White House on Thursday at Melania Trump's invitation. The White House said she independently initiated engagement and secured the ceasefire, calling it an unprecedented diplomatic initiative by a first lady. Both sides thanked her but did not detail her involvement. Zelensky's decree also cited her work on Ukrainian children affected by the war. Russian, Ukrainian, and US representatives will meet in Abu Dhabi next week for trilateral talks on postwar security.
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