Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky has awarded the Order of Princess Olga, 1st Class, to US First Lady Melania Trump. The award, which is the country's highest honor for women, was granted for her "significant personal contribution to humanitarian support for Ukraine," according to a presidential decree.
The honor follows a ceasefire in Ukraine's southern Kherson region, which facilitated the evacuation of several hundred people from the Russian-occupied city of Oleshky. The White House stated that Melania Trump "independently initiated engagement between the two warring nations and successfully secured a ceasefire," describing the achievement as an "unprecedented diplomatic initiative by an American First Lady."
While both Russian and Ukrainian sides have repeatedly thanked Melania Trump for brokering the ceasefire, neither side has elaborated on the nature or extent of her involvement.
On Thursday, Russian and Ukrainian delegations are scheduled to meet at the White House at Melania Trump's invitation. The White House has not shared details on what the event will entail, though Melania Trump is scheduled to deliver remarks on the Oleshky ceasefire at 11:00 (16:00 GMT) on Thursday.
The delegations include Ukraine's human rights ombudsman Dmytro Lubinets and his Russian counterpart Yana Lantratova, who traveled together into Oleshky last week. They will be joined by Ukrainian MP Davyd Arakhamia and Russian senior official Kirill Dmitriev. Arakhamia, who heads Zelensky's party in parliament, was reportedly responsible for informal contact between the White House and Moscow during the ceasefire, according to diplomatic sources quoted by Ukrainian media. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov confirmed the Russian delegation will consist of Lantratova and Dmitriev, a businessman close to the Kremlin who has frequently participated in US-brokered ceasefire talks.
Zelensky's decree also highlighted Melania Trump's wider humanitarian work, specifically her efforts regarding Ukrainian children affected by the war. In 2025, Trump stated an "open channel of communication" had been established with Russian President Vladimir Putin to allow displaced Ukrainian children to be reunited with their families. This follows a statement earlier this year by the UN that the deportation and forcible transfer of Ukrainian children to Russia constitutes a crime against humanity and a war crime. Ukraine reports that almost 20,000 children have been illegally sent to Russia and Belarus since the full-scale invasion began in 2022.
Next week, Russian, Ukrainian, and American representatives will hold their first trilateral meeting since February in Abu Dhabi. US envoy Steve Witkoff said on Monday that these talks will focus on de-escalation and postwar security agreements.
