Russians regained positions that Ukrainian forces spent nearly a year clearing during the Oleshky ceasfire Russia returns to the ultimatums of 2021 in negotiations with the USA and Ukraine
Oleksandr Prokudin, head of the Kherson Oblast Military Administration, said Russian forces used the recent ceasefire in Oleshky to return to positions that Ukrainian defenders had spent nearly a year systematically clearing. During the humanitarian pause, Russian troops rotated personnel, rebuilt destroyed fortifications, and stockpiled food, generators, and fuel. They also brought in additional weapons, including drones, artillery, ammunition, and Grad multiple-launch rocket systems, while searching the city for basements to establish new drone operator positions.Prokudin warned that an increase in Russian strikes should be expected after the ceasefire ends.
Russian forces are already conducting around 700–800 drone attacks per day, deliberately targeting civilians in Kherson and riverside communities. He said the escalation is likely to be particularly noticeable on November 11, which Russia marks as “Liberation Day,” and confirmed that Ukrainian forces are preparing for intensified attacks.
Even before the ceasefire, Russian troops had attempted to cross the Dnipro River by boat and jet ski in shows of force, but Ukrainian defenders thwarted every attempt, killing most of the assault groups and capturing the remainder. Prokudin also noted that Russian forces held back humanitarian aid delivered during the mission, storing it in their own warehouses instead of distributing it to residents. Around 1,300 civilians continue to survive in the occupied city amid ongoing hardship.
Russia returns to 2021 ultimatums in negotiations with the USA and Ukraine
During the trilateral talks in Abu Dhabi, Russia is attempting to shift the focus away from ending its war against Ukraine and toward major changes to Europe’s security architecture. According to the Institute for the Study of War (ISW), the Kremlin is effectively reviving its December 2021 ultimatums to the United States and NATO, which demanded that the alliance halt deployments of new weapons and personnel in countries that joined after 1997.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov stated that it is “absolutely reasonable” to first agree on the future of European security before addressing the war in Ukraine. An unnamed Russian delegation source similarly described settling the conflict as “only one point” subordinate to the broader goal of reshaping a “comprehensive” and “indivisible” European security system. The ISW notes that these demands would effectively give Russia a veto over NATO policy and limit the sovereign right of states to join the alliance.
Analysts emphasize that the Kremlin continues to justify its invasion by falsely claiming NATO expansion threatened Russian security, despite the absence of any concrete steps toward Ukrainian membership between 2008 and 2022. Meanwhile, Ukrainian, U.S., and European officials have stressed the need for credible long-term security guarantees for Ukraine and for direct European participation in future negotiations—conditions Russia has repeatedly rejected.
US special envoys Kushner and Witkoff plan meetings with Putin in Moscow and Zelensky in Dublin
US special envoys Jared Kushner and Steve Witkoff will travel to Moscow on Thursday for talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin, followed by a meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in Dublin. Kushner made the announcement after the first day of trilateral talks between Ukraine, the United States, and Russia in Abu Dhabi, which he described as “very substantive” though “pretty tough.”
Kushner said the Moscow meeting aims to review the issues discussed in Abu Dhabi and make further progress, with a particular focus on finalizing humanitarian relief measures, the release of prisoners, and other humanitarian matters. The envoys also plan to explore whether European representatives can be brought into the format to turn the talks into a broader multilateral process.
After the talks in Moscow, Kushner and Witkoff will fly to Dublin to debrief Zelensky and further develop some of the ideas that emerged during the Abu Dhabi discussions.