Melania Trump Holds Meeting at White House With Representatives of Ukraine and Russia

Reform.news Editorial Team · 5 November 2026, 20:14

https://reform.news/en/melania-trump-holds-meeting-at-white-house-with-representatives-of-ukraine-and-russia/

US First Lady Melania Trump held a meeting at the White House with representatives of Ukraine and Russia to discuss a ceasefire in the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky in the Kherson Region and the evacuation of civilians.

Those attending included David Arakhamia, leader of the Servant of the People faction in Ukraine’s Verkhovna Rada; Ukrainian Human Rights Commissioner Dmytro Lubinets; Russian President’s Special Representative Kirill Dmitriev; and Russian Human Rights Commissioner Yana Lantratova.

The White House described the meeting as “unprecedented”, saying it brought together key officials from both countries who had played an important role in securing the ceasefire in Oleshky.

Melania Trump said she had acted as a mediator in arranging the ceasefire in Oleshky and surrounding areas of the Kherson Region. According to her, she learned of the humanitarian crisis in the region in September and instructed her representative, Marc Beckman, to contact the Russian and Ukrainian sides.

“My role as the exclusive mediator was documented in written agreements drafted and signed by Russia and Ukraine,” the First Lady said. “I was involved at every stage of the planning. I reviewed demining plans and aerial photographs, assessed road conditions, and discussed evacuation routes, access to hospitals, vehicles and medical resources. I was kept informed of the preferred dates and timelines for the operation.”

The agreements were signed by the parties on October 23, 2026. The First Lady noted that food, drinking water and medicine had been delivered to Oleshky during the ceasefire, and that nearly 800 people had been able to leave the danger zone.

In her remarks, Melania Trump highlighted the roles of Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelenskyy in facilitating the operation. She said the agreement could serve as an example of cooperation on humanitarian issues despite the ongoing war.

“Now we must use the courage that brought us to Oleshky to find common ground based on our shared concern for the suffering of innocent people. Together, we can create something more lasting than a temporary ceasefire,” she said.

At the end of the meeting, Melania Trump handed the Russian and Ukrainian representatives letters addressed to Putin and Zelenskyy.

The First Lady also showed her guests two historical artefacts from the White House collection, which she described as powerful symbols of peace. The first, a late-18th-century medical kit, was removed from the White House after British troops set fire to the building during the War of 1812. The United States and Britain, once adversaries, eventually established a lasting alliance. She also displayed a commemorative cup from 1899, presented to French Ambassador Jules Cambon in recognition of France’s diplomatic efforts to negotiate peace and end the Spanish-American War.

The Ukrainian representatives presented Melania Trump with a Ukrainian presidential award — the Order of Princess Olga, First Class.

It should be recalled that the ceasefire in Russian-occupied Oleshky was in effect from October 27 to November 1. A humanitarian operation was conducted during this period, and humanitarian aid was delivered to residents of the city. Those wishing to leave were offered evacuation routes to Russia or Ukraine via Belarus. Ukraine and Russia agreed not to disclose the exact number of people evacuated.