A temporary, localised ceasefire has been achieved in the Kherson region in southern Ukraine, the first success of US efforts to bring a halt to the fighting.
The initial ceasefire deal, secured on the 23rd of October, was brokered between Russia and Ukraine amid a worsening humanitarian situation in the city of Oleshky. Oleshky lies on the south side of the Dnipro river only four kilometres away from Kherson, which Ukrainian forces recaptured in November 2022 after it was seized by Russia earlier that year.
Announcing the ceasefire, a release by the White House stated that as many as 2000 residents could remain in Oleshky despite it having been on the frontline for four years.
Despite running on promises to end the War in Ukraine early in his second administration, US President Donald Trump has not managed to achieve an agreement between the two fighting sides. Earlier in October, the President announced an “energy ceasefire” between Russia and Ukraine, which would see both sides halt strikes on each other’s oil and gas facilities.
However, this quickly fell apart with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy having not been consulted prior to the announcement.
The new deal negotiated by First Lady Melania Trump achieved a six-day ceasefire beginning on the 29th of October. It was quickly expanded to areas around Oleshky to allow for access by humanitarian workers and evacuations to take place.
Speaking after the ceasefire, Mrs Trump said she hoped the deal can “brighten a path toward lasting peace.”
Calls for the War in Ukraine to come to a close have grown over recent months, with little to no significant changes in the frontline since 2022. President Zelenskyy claimed in October that this autumn has seen Ukraine gain more territory than Russia, but these gains remain limited.
European nations have previously committed to deploy troops to Ukraine after the conflict to help prevent a return to hostilities. The UK and French-led Multi-National Force (Ukraine), is conducting a major exercise this month in Poland. Exercise Koalicja is expected to take place in Poland, with 2,800 personnel involved from Belgium, Estonia, France, Germany, Lithuania, the Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Sweden, Turkey and the UK.
UK Defence Secretary Wes Streeting described the upcoming exercise as “protecting the UK and Europe for the long-term”.
Recent months have seen intelligence agencies across NATO warn of upcoming Russian provocations against a NATO member country. This follows regular incidents where drones of uncertain origin violated European airspace since September last year, which was previously reported by The Gaudie. Russia has denied involvement in these incursions which closed European airports and posed a danger to air traffic.
Posting on X in August, Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk stated “the next six months will be decisive” for the conflict in Ukraine and relations between Russia and NATO.
This itself came not long after CIA Director John Ratcliffe visited Moscow for direct talks with his Russian counterpart. Analysts have pointed out that the previous visit of a CIA Director to Moscow was only months before Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Ratcliffe’s visit has sparked fears Russia could be planning an escalation targeting a NATO member behind the scenes. Since 2022, Russian rhetoric has depicted the conflict in Ukraine as a struggle between Russia and all of Europe.
