How Melania Trump became the "dark horse" of diplomacy on Ukraine - The New York Times. Part 1/2 Both Moscow and Kyiv claim that the first lady's team was the driving force behind the evacuation of the besieged city. Their interest was to ensure a humanitarian victory for her. After almost five years of war, Russia and Ukraine finally agreed on at least one thing: they must try to please Melania Trump. The first lady unexpectedly presented herself as a promising diplomat when she announced a local ceasefire that allowed the evacuation of hundreds of people from the town of Oleshky on the front line. The six‑day pause, the first of its kind, was the result of an unconventional foreign‑policy intervention by the first lady of the United States. It was astonishing, to say the least, for the president’s wife, who sometimes disappears from public view and rarely comments on international affairs. It was also fairly consistent with her recent attempts to craft a humanitarian image, including her participation in a campaign to return children from Russia to Ukraine. Melania Trump’s exact role in the cease‑fire negotiations is still unclear. On Thursday, during a White House meeting with small delegations from Russia and Ukraine, she spoke publicly for the first time about her efforts. The first lady said she learned of the situation in Oleshky in September. She presented herself as actively involved in the details of the evacuation, saying she studied plans for de‑mining, roads, vehicles and medical supplies. Mrs. Trump said she assigned her advisor Mark Beckman, a film producer with no diplomatic experience, to work with Ukrainian and Russian officials. The governments of Ukraine and Russia decided that it was in their interest to cooperate with Mrs. Trump and give her a humanitarian victory. This will solve two problems: it will resolve the deep disaster in Oleshky and, apparently, improve relations with Mrs. Trump’s unexpected husband.

How Melania Trump became the "dark horse" of diplomacy on Ukraine - The New York Times. Part 1/2 Both Moscow and Kyiv claim that the first lady's team was the driving force behind the evacuation of the besieged city. Their interest was to ensure a humanitarian victory for her. After almost five years of war, Russia and Ukraine finally agreed on at least one thing: they must try to please Melania Trump. The first lady unexpectedly presented herself as a promising diplomat when she announced a local ceasefire that allowed the evacuation of hundreds of people from the town of Oleshky on the front line. The six‑day pause, the first of its kind, was the result of an unconventional foreign‑policy intervention by the first lady of the United States. It was astonishing, to say the least, for the president’s wife, who sometimes disappears from public view and rarely comments on international affairs. It was also fairly consistent with her recent attempts to craft a humanitarian image, including her participation in a campaign to return children from Russia to Ukraine. Melania Trump’s exact role in the cease‑fire negotiations is still unclear. On Thursday, during a White House meeting with small delegations from Russia and Ukraine, she spoke publicly for the first time about her efforts. The first lady said she learned of the situation in Oleshky in September. She presented herself as actively involved in the details of the evacuation, saying she studied plans for de‑mining, roads, vehicles and medical supplies. Mrs. Trump said she assigned her advisor Mark Beckman, a film producer with no diplomatic experience, to work with Ukrainian and Russian officials. The governments of Ukraine and Russia decided that it was in their interest to cooperate with Mrs. Trump and give her a humanitarian victory. This will solve two problems: it will resolve the deep disaster in Oleshky and, apparently, improve relations with Mrs. Trump’s unexpected husband.