Day 1,706.
As the first buses evacuate residents in Russian-occupied Oleshky, Dr Jade McGlynn puts us on the ground with reports from local sources. During a brief local ceasefire, brokered by US first lady Melania Trump, she tells us about residents’ mistrust of the process and fear of Russian authorities, to the point that some may prefer to stay in the starved city. In Russia’s Samara oblast, a Ukrainian strike transforms an oil refinery into an apocalyptic landscape, amid reports that Kyiv defied President Trump’s energy truce. Finally, we discuss Washington’s latest plans to ease sanctions on Moscow and the closure of the last independent Russian newspaper, Novaya Gazeta.
Contributors:
Adélie Pojzman-Pontay (Host on Ukraine: The Latest). @Adeliepjz on X.
Jade McGlynn (Senior Research Fellow, King’s College London). @DrJadeMcGlynn on X.
Sophie O’Sullivan (Telegraph journalist).
Producer: Rachel Porter
Senior Producer: Lilian Fawcett
Video Producer: Sophie O’Sullivan
Social Producer: Tom Steed
Studio Director: Meghan Searle
Executive Editor: Francis Dearnley
Created by David Knowles
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CONTENT REFERENCED:
Listen to Adélie’s interview with the mother of a Ukrainian child adopted by Putin ally
On Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/gb/podcast/nato-and-russia-edge-closer-to-standoff-exclusive/id1612424182?i=1000728072996
On Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/5qaTQOZyq5jVUK1B2U7Cqh?si=bL1xPwIMT_CbT1xUlTPd8g
Residents leave devastated Russian-occupied Oleshky as evacuation corridor opens (BBC)
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c60me298k1yeo
Melania’s ceasefire is cover for major offensive, say Ukrainian soldiers (The Telegraph)
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/world-news/2026/10/30/melania-trump-pope-ceasefire-oleshky-southern-ukraine/
Ukraine Hits Russian Oil Refinery, Ending Pause and Defying Trump (Wall Street Journal)
South Korean ‘tilt’ towards Russia alarms European allies (Financial Times)
https://www.ft.com/content/91f45684-1e10-4aa1-b1d5-019fc41ff1c5
EU governments helpless as energy prices soar to four-year highs (Politico)
https://www.politico.eu/article/eu-energy-prices-fossil-fuels-gas-middle-east-four-year-high/
Ukrainian composer Lubomyr Melnyk
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC7KVIfxOuAwtuVaWejKmKuA
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Contact the team on ukrainepod@telegraph.co.uk. We continue to read every message, and seek to respond to as many as possible.
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