A key local ceasefire in Ukraine that promised to save more than 1,000 civilians has sparked an unexpected fight over who brokered the ceasefire.
The White House claims that US first lady Melania Trump brokered a ceasefire in Oreshki between Russia and Ukraine, following weeks of alarming reports from the city warning of a growing humanitarian crisis.
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But the Vatican took its own view, suggesting the pope was responsible for helping to halt the fighting through telephone conversations with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy.
Here’s why what we know about the Oreshky ceasefire and the differences in how it came to be important.
What do you mean by ceasefire?
Russia captured the town of Oreshki in southern Ukraine’s Kherson region early in the invasion in February 2022 and has maintained control ever since.
However, the town suffered extensive war damage and was flooded in 2023 after the nearby Kakhovka Dam was destroyed.
The town, which the U.S. estimates has between 1,700 and 2,000 residents, reports severe shortages of food, medicine and other supplies, residents and officials said.
Then, on October 23, a short ceasefire was announced. Ukrainian and Russian officials said the suspension of fighting over Oreshkiy would allow for the provision of humanitarian aid and the evacuation of people wishing to leave the Russian-occupied town.
They added that a humanitarian corridor would be established to enable the delivery of aid.
Both sides say the ceasefire, scheduled to end Sunday, is not a comprehensive end to hostilities. Multiple diplomatic efforts to end the war have so far failed.
Still, the Kremlin said Monday that the ceasefire could set a precedent for similar local ceasefires in the future.
Russia’s Ministry of Defense announced on Telegram that it had ceased shelling of the Ukrainian city of Kherson from 4 a.m. Moscow time (1 p.m. Japan time) on Tuesday in preparation for an attack in Oreshki.
“As head of the Ukrainian negotiating team, I confirm that the Ukrainian side is keeping its commitments,” Dmytro Rubinets, a parliamentary human rights commissioner, said in a Facebook post, confirming the timing of Russia’s suspension.
What are First Lady Melania and the White House saying?
Announcing the ceasefire on Friday, US first lady Melania Trump said the situation in the town was “dire” and on the “brink of disaster.”
“The people of Oreshky live with limited power, mined roads, and endure regular military attacks. It was abundantly clear that without my intervention it would be impossible to bring humanitarian aid to the city and evacuate the elderly,” she said in a statement released by the White House.
It added that Melania and her representatives worked closely with the Russian and Ukrainian leaders to set the terms of a ceasefire.
“Non-military and civilian leaders from both countries will work together to visit Oreshki residents in their homes and determine the level of support needed. Residents who wish to evacuate will be provided with tailored support and transportation to their desired destination. Some will want to go to Russia, others to Ukraine,” Melania said.
Ukraine’s human rights ombudsman Dmytro Rubinets also publicly thanked the first lady and her team for helping arrange the meeting. Russian officials confirmed the agreement.
What does the Vatican say?
The morning after the White House’s announcement, the Vatican published a front-page article in its official newspaper, L’Osservatore Romano. Headline: Humanitarian ceasefire against Oreshky.
The article highlighted that the ceasefire was secured after Pope Leo asked Russian and Ukrainian leaders to agree to a pause in fighting to rescue trapped civilians.
Pope Leo added that he spoke by phone with Russian President Vladimir Putin on October 16 and expressed “deep concern about the serious humanitarian situation in the city of Oreshki” and called for a ceasefire to allow for food and medical aid.
The pope made the call while in hospital recovering from surgery to remove a cancerous tumor in his lung.
Three days later, on October 19, Pope Leo also met with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky about the situation in Oreshki.
Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, the papal envoy, pressed Russian authorities about Oreshki’s situation during a visit to Moscow in late September.
Has Trump ever fought with the Pope?
US President Donald Trump and Pope Leo have a strained relationship.
Pope Leo, the first U.S. pope in history, criticized President Trump’s decision to go to war with Iran, saying it violates the Catholic moral principle of “just war.”
In April, in response to Leo’s criticism, Trump said the pope is “weak on crime and weak on nuclear weapons,” said he would not have been elected pope if Trump had not been president, and claimed, without evidence, that his presidency helped Leo get the position.
“Leo should get his act together as a pope, use common sense, stop pandering to the radical left, and focus on being a great pope, not a politician. It hurts him badly, and more importantly, it hurts the Catholic Church!” Trump wrote in Truth Social at the time.
Does this matter for the US midterm elections?
President Trump is unpopular among Catholics. Refusing to even mention the Pope’s role in the Oreshky truce is unlikely to help him.
The midterm elections scheduled for next week will often reflect the performance of the incumbent president, as voters decide whether President Donald Trump’s Republican Party can maintain control of Congress.
According to a Pew Research Center survey conducted from September 28 to October 4, President Trump’s approval rating among Catholics had fallen from 47 percent at the start of his second term in January 2025 to just 30 percent by October 2026. As many as 20 percent of American adults identify as Catholic.
Among white Catholics, President Trump’s popularity fell from 59 percent to 39 percent, and among Hispanic Catholics it plummeted from 31 percent to 18 percent.
